Stellenbosch is at its most enchanting in spring. Fresh green leaves appear on the oak trees that line the historic walkways, and in the surrounding valleys, South Africa’s oldest wine route comes alive with budding vines, every bud a promise of the new vintage to come.
Few places offer a more pleasant setting in which to work, live, or spend a morning supporting a project dedicated to saving lives.
Although it’s a Saturday morning, teachers from four local preprimary schools have skipped the weekend lie-in and shown up for school. But they’re not in their classrooms, nor are they at the front of the class. Instead, they are seated in tidy rows in a training room at Stellenbosch Mediclinic, ready to learn about stroke and the award-winning campaign that equips children with knowledge, and empowers them to help protect the people they love.
Their teachers today are emergency doctor Dr Werner Venter, and Renathe van der Merwe, country coordinator of FAST Heroes. It’s Renathe’s second consecutive day training teachers in the Stellenbosch area. On Friday, training took place at Akkerdoppies, and later teachers from Uyesu Unathi Educare in nearby Khayelitsha were hosted at Stellenbosch Mediclinic. This morning, it’s the turn of educators from Charlotte’s Web Daycare & Preschool Centre, Speelkring Pre-Primary School, and The Banyard School. They will not only learn about the causes and symptoms of stroke: they will also receive instruction on how to implement the FAST Heroes program in their classrooms.
FAST Heroes is a schools-based program designed to boost public awareness of stroke. It targets children between the ages of five and nine and encourages them to become superheroes, who transfer essential knowledge about stroke to their parents and grandparents. The program
teaches children and their families to recognize the three main stroke symptoms – facial droop, arm weakness and speech difficulty – and to call the emergency medical number immediately when a stroke is suspected.
With its superhero theme, state-of-the-art animation, engaging storylines and catchy tunes, FAST Heroes is enchanting children around the world. In its first decade, it has reached well over one million children in 40 countries, and its accolades include a Guinness World Record for the largest online photo album of people wearing superhero costume masks.
Members of the global FAST Heroes community who make exceptional contributions to the mission to save lives are recognized annually at the FAST Heroes Awards. This year’s virtual ceremony took place on June 15, followed by the international FAST Heroes Summit held in Bratislava, Slovakia.
Three South Africans were among the amazing teachers, committed children, adult advocates, and engaged grandparents who were celebrated in Bratislava.
Dainfern College ninth-grader Robbie Hurley won a Top Teaching Child Award for introducing FAST Heroes at his school. Lonel Carstens, a Grade R teacher at Van Reede School in Oudtshoorn, was highly commended in the Amazing Teacher Category, and nurse Loandi le Roux won the FAST Heroes Adult Advocate Award for her dedication to promoting stroke awareness and sharing the FAST Heroes campaign message.
Sr Loandi is emergency unit manager at Stellenbosch Mediclinic and the main driver behind this weekend’s activities. She is indeed a passionate and dedicated advocate for the FAST Heroes campaign and plays a vital role in encouraging schools to get involved and helping the program grow. She and Renathe go way back, to when Renathe was an Angels consultant helping hospitals improve their stroke care.
Before the teachers leave the class room with all the materials they need to implement the program in their schools, Saturday morning’s training will culminate in a special moment when Renathe presents Loandi with her FAST Heroes Award.
But first there is a tour of the radiology department so the teachers can get a close-up look at a CT scanner. A CT imaging test is a vital part of diagnosing stroke. It shows whether the stroke was caused by a clot blocking blood flow, or by bleeding from a ruptured blood vessel, and helps rule out other conditions.
Finally, the teachers line up to have their blood glucose, pulse rate, oxygen levels and blood pressure checked by three nurses on Loandi’s team. If any of them are at risk of having a future stroke, these tests will give them the information they need to prevent it.
Loandi has a simple reason for supporting FAST Heroes – it makes her happy. It’s like the joy you experience when a stroke patient has received emergency treatment in time, and is starting to recover, she says. “FAST Heroes makes me feel exactly like that.”
