MELAKA: Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, wife of the prime minister, has called for an active and systematic campaign to create awareness in and educate the people to take preventive measures against chronic ailments such as stroke.
She said all quarters, particularly non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and corporate bodies, should carry out the campaign continuously.
“Health Ministry statistics show that more than 40,000 Malaysians suffer from stroke annually, making it the third biggest killer in the country,” she said when addressing a charity dinner organised by the Melaka Stroke Foundation (YAAM) at Seri Negeri here Tuesday night.
Melaka Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam and his wife, Datin Seri Asmah Abdul Rahman, and YAAM Chairman Hasnah Salam also attended the dinner.
Rosmah said stroke was a disturbing phenomenon because more than 50 per cent of the victims did not show any early symptoms of an attack.
“Much remains to be done to create awareness in the general public on healthy living to keep away stress which is a primary risk factor often linked to stroke,” she said.
At the event, YAAM received donations to the tune of RM238,000 from various quarters, including a cheque for RM200,000 from the main sponsor of the event, Bina Puri Holdings Bhd.
Two songs rendered by Rosmah at the request of the guests raised the donations by RM100,000 to RM338,000, with the donation coming from Bina Puri Holdings.
YAAM, which was founded in 2006 as an NGO, carries out various activities, among them collecting and compiling data on stroke victims in Melaka as well as providing localised treatment centres. — Bernama