MIND MATTERS: STROKE WEEK 2021
The UP-PGH Department of Neurosciences held its annual stroke week with the theme: “Mind Matters: Stroke Week 2021”. For the second time around, the Stroke Week was held virtually last August 16-20, 2021 via Zoom and Facebook Live. Activities during the week include Thrombolysis workshop, Lay forum, Grand Rounds, Nurses and Doctors forum, and finally Cooking and Yoga culminating activities.
The week started with the Thrombolysis workshop which includes a brief introduction to Angels Initiative, healthcare initiative helping hospitals to become ‘stroke-ready’, rTPA Training lecture with Inclusion-Exclusion Criteria delivered by Dr Maria Carissa C. Pineda-Franks and interesting case presentations on Thrombolysis for Special Stroke Cases which were given reaction by stroke consultants Dr Ma. Epifania Collantes, Dr. Ma. Cristina San Jose and Dr. Lennie Chua-de Castillo. An interactive Question and Answer portion was done at the end of the session.
The following day, Lay Forum for stroke patients and their caregivers was spearheaded by DrArtemio Roxas and Dr Jose Leonard Pascual. A video presentation giving inspiration and hope to our stroke patients who we call Stroke Warriors was also shown.
On the third day of Stroke Week, the Department of Neurosciences Chief Resident, Dr Katrina Ignacio presented her Grand Rounds entitled “MINDfulness and Stroke”. Her presentation tackled post stroke anxiety and depression, one of the overlooked complications of stroke. The grand rounds was moderated by Dr Maria Carissa C. Pineda-Franks and reacted by Stroke Specialist Dr Epifania Collantes, stroke specialist, Chief of Division of CL Psychiatry Dr Constantine D. Della, and Rehab Medicine Specialist Dr Mitchell P. Gabuya.
By the fourth day, a simultaneous Nurses and Doctors forum was held. Ms Precious Deligente - dela Rosa gave a lecture on Nursing Care for Stroke Patients for the Nurses Forum. While on the Doctors forum, Dr Epifania Collantes gave a lecture on Updates on Stroke Management and Dr Ma. Cristina San Jose gave a lecture on COVID-19 and Stroke. A fruitful discussion was done afterwards on the live open forum.
Finally, to end the week-long celebration, the Dietary Department gave a talk on the appropriate diet for stroke patients while the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine gave a lecture on rehabilitation for stroke patients. At the same time, Ms Katrina Irra Tan, graciously gave a live Yoga lesson and meditation class for our doctors, nurses, and patients. All of these activities were aired via facebook live for a greater reach of attendees. To culminate the Stroke Week celebration, the winners of the “Lockdown Lunches” contest were announced. This contest was opened to the public a few weeks prior to the celebration, with the goal of promoting wellness through practicing a healthy diet. In this contest, people were encouraged to post a photo of a hearty meal, and the top 3 participants who got the most likes on Facebook / Instagram were chosen as winners. The top 3 winners were: Dr Paul Pasco, Dr TJ Ablaza, Dr Koko Pasamba.
The successful Stroke Week was attended by a total of 546 attendees (Thrombolysis Workshop - 171, Nurses forum - 100, Doctors forum - 201, Lay forum - 41, Culminating Activity - 33) and had a total reach of 4,582 on Facebook live (Nurses forum - 766, Doctors forum - 990, Lay forum - 2,200, Culminating Activity - 626).
