Words from the President, January 2025

06 Feb 2025 Words from the President

As soon as I took over, our center signed an MOU with the Government of Punjab on World Stroke Day to develop a Hub and Spoke model of stroke care with the state's government hospitals. This model will be the first in India under a public-private partnership aimed at improving acute stroke care services and access to reperfusion therapies. I also visited Hanoi and participated in the international stroke conference organized by the Vietnam Stroke Society and Hanoi Stroke Society. The WSO will be rolling out the stroke center certification program in Vietnam as part of a national action plan. The Taiwan Stroke Society has also expressed interest in the WSO Stroke center certification, which I discussed with its office bearers in Taipei.
In December, I conducted a three-day training course at the National Hospital of Timor Leste for neurologists, physicians, nurses, and allied health professionals. The government is committed to establishing a stroke unit and developing a stroke prevention program. The entire training program was supported by WHO SEARO and the WHO Timor Leste country office. The care model in Timor Leste is expected to pave the way for improved stroke care in the Western Pacific small islands. Additionally, I had the opportunity to participate in the Oman Stroke Society conference held in January in Khasab. I discussed the strategic rollout of the WSO Stroke center certification with colleagues from Iran, Iraq, Oman, Egypt, and KSA.
The new WSO Stroke center certification portal is being developed jointly with the RESQ group and is expected to be functional by the end of February. Centers will need to apply through the new portal. I am confident that the certification process will be scaled up in Asia, MENA, and Central Asia regions.
A major event we are looking forward to this year is the advocacy through the Stroke Action Coalition. The vibrant group is preparing policy briefs and planning to participate in many upcoming meetings in Geneva and other places. I am hopeful that this year we will be able to acquire a few philanthropic grants for the expanding work of WSO.