I thank the Minister for facilitating me and coming into the House. It is an extremely busy day but we both know stroke awareness is very important to both of us. This is national stroke awareness week, with this year's focus on the Irish Heart Foundation's Act FAST campaign, which was launched in 2010 to increase public awareness about the early signs of stroke and encourage speedy medical intervention. I welcome Mr. Chris Macey from the Irish Heart Foundation to the Gallery. Under an Adjournment motion in January last year I raised the issue of stroke rehabilitation services and the Minister knows I have raised it with him several times at the health committee.
An estimated 10,000 people suffered a stroke in Ireland in 2012 and the same number are expected to suffer a stroke this year. Approximately 2,000 die as a result of stroke, making it Ireland's third biggest killer. Stroke is the single most significant cause of severe disability and up to 50,000 people are living in our communities with disabilities as a result of strokes. In addition to the devastating impact stroke has on the sufferer and their families, the financial costs are huge. The Economic and Social Research Institute, ESRI, estimated that in 2010 the direct annual cost of stroke was €557 million of which as much as €414 million is spent on nursing home care and there is nothing to indicate that this cost has fallen in the past three years.
In the face of these stark figures, the Irish Heart Foundation's Act FAST campaign is a commendable initiative which warrants State support. The campaign, while still in its infancy, has been a resounding success, particularly in raising public awareness of stroke warning signs through the first three letters of the acronym FAST, as follows: face, has the person's face fallen on one side?; arms: can the person raise both arms and keep them elevated?; and speech, is the person's speech slurred?
The most recent Irish Heart Foundation's Attitudes and Behaviour study found that there had been a 190% increase in awareness of these warning signs. This increased awareness, along with the rapid development of the 24-7 thrombolysis services nationally by the HSE's national stroke programme, has contributed to a 400% increase in the numbers receiving life-changing, clot-busting treatment and it has helped cut death and disability rates from strokes significantly, against demographic and international trends.
However, the last letter of the acronym, arguably the most important one since it is the call to action, namely, "T", time to call 999 if one sees any of the signs, has not had the desired impact. Just over half of the respondents surveyed said they would call an ambulance. Speedy medical intervention is imperative if we are to limit the detrimental impact of stroke. The average stroke destroys 2 million brain cells every minute, which means the quicker one gets emergency treatment, the more of one's brain can be saved. The knock-on effect is reduced risk of death or severe disability and a considerable financial saving to the State.
The Irish Heart Foundation is entering a new stage of the campaign where there is clearly room to improve on awareness of the timely medical intervention, and it needs State support. In addition to financial assistance, there are other supports at the disposal of the State, such as providing advertising sites in high footfall areas of Government buildings and properties and maybe examining a way of reimbursing the 23% they have to pay in non-returnable VAT for the campaign, which is proving to save lives and improve the quality of life, and is also saving the State money. I would like the Minister's reassurance that both financial and alternative means of supporting the new phase of the Act FAST campaign are being positively considered.