Canadian Red Cross highlights importance of first aid for World Health Day

Celebrated annually on April 7 to observe the founding of the World Health Organization (WHO), World Health Day is an event that strives to raise awareness of the public health issues that exist around the globe.

Each year, the organizers select a theme that highlights a priority area for public health around the world. Past years have highlighted health and ageing, and urban health.

For 2013, high blood pressure was selected as the theme of World Health Day. Also referred to as hypertension, this condition can increase the risk of heart attacks and strokes and impacts one in three adults worldwide, according to WHO. In Africa, high blood pressure is thought to affect more than 40 per cent of adults.

As one of the most active charity organizations in Canada, the Canadian Red Cross is committed to helping those in need and honouring the humanitarian spirit of World Health Day, both in the country and internationally, through a variety of world health programs.

The aims of World Health Day 2013
The 2013 World Health Day awareness campaign centres on reducing the global burden of disabilities and deaths caused by high blood pressure. Hypertension can lead to heart attacks and strokes, which are the second and third leading causes of death in Canada.

Make a difference
Knowing how to help a person suffering a heart attack or stroke can mean the difference between full recovery and permanent disability or death. Effective bystander CPR, when used with an automated external defibrillator (AED) and started immediately after a heart attack, can double a person's chances of survival after a heart attack. That is why the Canadian Red Cross works to improve Canadians' knowledge and confidence in first aid.

The Canadian Red Cross is a leading provider of first aid training in Canada, helping more than half a million people acquire life-saving CPR and AED skills each year. Canadians who have taken a first aid course are considerably more confident in their skills to help someone experiencing a medical emergency.

The Canadian Red Cross also works around the world to improve individuals' and communities' ability to respond to emergencies like strokes and heart attacks.

With help from Canadians like you, the Canadian Red Cross can better respond to the needs of individuals who have been impacted by adversity.

To provide relief to people by hardships, please donate online or at your local Canadian Red Cross office today. Your contribution will help fund humanitarian work both in the country and abroad.