The theme for the 10th Annual World Brain Day is “Brain Health and Disability: Leave No One Behind”. By focusing on raising awareness about neurological disabilities and addressing the existing barriers in healthcare, the World Federation of Neurology (WFN) aims to close the gaps in disability awareness, ensuring that when it comes to brain health, no one is left behind.
Taking place on July 22, 2023, the WFN aims to shed light on the challenges faced by individuals with neurological disabilities, and promote understanding and inclusivity in society.
Brain disabilities affect individuals from all walks of life, regardless of age, ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic status.
Brain disorders have a significant impact on global health. They are the leading cause of disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) and the second leading cause of death worldwide. This burden is particularly high in low-income and middle-income countries (Wijeratne et al. 2022). It is crucial that awareness is raised in order to improve access to necessary resources and address the gaps in equity.
Here are several key aims of this year’s World Brain Day:
Prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation are key aspects of managing brain disabilities. By focusing on prevention strategies and raising awareness of the risk factors, as well as ensuring the availability of early treatment, we can reduce the occurrence of brain disabilities. We must ensure that individuals with brain disabilities have equal access to care, treatment, rehabilitation programs, and assistive technology. Promoting education about brain health is critical. Promoting early signs and symptoms of brain disorders, available treatments, and strategies for prevention empowers individuals to act. Lastly, advocacy plays an essential role in raising awareness and promoting change to ensure that anyone, anywhere with a brain disability can access the care they need.
These five aims collectively showcase the importance of raising awareness, advocating for access and equity, promoting education, and recognising brain health as a fundamental human right.
It is crucial that the initiative helps to expand awareness and highlight the complexity of issues faced by individuals with disabilities.
As Prof. Grisold, President of WFN, stated, “Individuals with disabilities have so many odds stacked against them”.
“We selected this year's theme to bring attention to the large number of people suffering from neurological disability worldwide”.
Source & Image Credit: WFN
References:
Wijeratne T et al. (2022) Brain health for all on World Brain Day 2022. The Lancet Neurology. 21 (9): P772-773.
World Federation of Neurology [WFN] (2023) World Brain Day 2023.
