Cerebral Vascular Accident (CVA) remains the leading cause of death in Portugal, but in the Algarve there have been two Mutual Aid Groups (GAM) for survivors, caregivers and family members for a year. The balance “is very positive” and the prospects are for continuing to grow.
O first GAM appeared last year, in Portimão, on June 5th. Already in Faro, the Group was created a day later.
Nurse Ivone Máximo, herself a stroke survivor, is responsible for the initiative in Portimão. “The balance is very positive. We held 10 sessions at the Hospital, 8 of them with training courses. We didn't have many participants, but we received at least 30 people, including survivors, caregivers and family members», he told the Sul Informação.
Some of the training sessions carried out were on topics such as life after a stroke, the benefits of relaxation and guidelines for swallowing.
“One of the biggest problems for these people is isolation, due to the multiple consequences they have. Patients are isolated and this is a help to break that, also giving a lot of information that people do not know», he explained.
The age range of the participants ranged between 37 and 80 years old. “We feel that we have come to fill a gap. Stroke remains the leading cause of death and disability in Portugal. It is obvious that this is an important initiative», he said.
Em Faro, the doctor Ana Paula Fidalgo is in charge of this Mutual Help Group. The balance, as in Portimão, “is quite positive”.
There were, in the 11 monthly sessions held in the capital of the Algarve, an average of 14 participants. The fact that in Faro running a stroke unit at the Hospital is a help.
“Disclosure is done as soon as the patients are discharged. The group that is in the CVA Unit sees the patient in the acute phase, in the ward, in the consultation and then also in this GAM, which is an added value», he considered to Sul Informação.
In Portimão, the lack of a CVA Unit makes the work more difficult. "Information is more difficult to pass on," lamented nurse Ivone Máximo.
Still, he assured, the work "is to continue". “It's difficult, but our idea is to reach more people, improving communication vehicles,” he said.
In the GAM of Faro, the future is also seen as an opportunity to grow and there are even ideas.
“We want to create a telephone line so that survivors can call after leaving the hospital, when they have doubts or even pain. It's one more way to help», concluded the doctor Ana Paula Fidalgo.
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