I thank the Leader for being here today. I am going to raise an issue relating to an event that both he and I attended recently in Galway at Croí House. We met with Dr. Niamh Hannon and members of the Croí House about the future of cardiovascular health in Ireland. It was a very informative session that we attended. Among those present were some as young as 22 years of age who have had a stroke. Family members were also there and we heard about the impact on people's lives when somebody has a heart attack or stroke. Clinicians were also present.

What people might not be aware of is that there are 7,500 strokes every year in Ireland and 6,500 heart attacks. Out of that, the minimum stay in hospital for any one of those people is five days. The cost for five days for the 7,500 stroke patients is €35 million. If they spend a full week in hospital, the cost is €52 million.

The emergency department in Galway has one to two admissions a day that are related to either heart or stroke. The Croí foundation spoke of the need to create a national plan to promote cardiovascular health and reduce the burden of cardiovascular disease, with a major focus on prevention. A national strategy needs to be in place by 2025, with a review and evaluation taking place.

It was amazing to learn also that at the moment in Ireland, 30,000 people are living with the consequences of stroke and 90,000 people are living with the consequences of a heart attack. All those people need access to primary care for physiotherapy, occupational therapy or speech and language therapy - proper rehabilitation to get back to the full functionality they previously had.

There is no doubt there is a need for a strategy and joined-up thinking on it, but there is also a need for a conversation as to where we are going. Given that we are spending more than €104 million between the two diseases, awareness, prevention and education have a role to play. That is the case in particular for the signs and symptoms for heart attacks in women. I was not aware of all of these. Aside from a heaviness or tightness in the chest, there is fatigue - which we always put down to work - indigestion, shortness of breath, pain in the back, nausea, light-headedness, discomfort in the neck or jaw and sweating. It is not always just a pain in one's chest.

In a totally unrelated way, I too want to raise the work of Croí here today. I was not at the information session Senator Rabbitte attended last week, but on Friday last I was involved in the first Croí 5 km run-walk held outside Galway as a fundraiser.

The organisation's major fundraiser, which supported all the amazing work Senator Rabbitte spoke about, took place last Friday night in Salthill. We ran the first one to be held outside of Galway in County Roscommon and it was the first such event to be held there. As Senator Rabbitte said, Croí's mission is to prevent heart disease and strokes, save lives and empower and support families, communities and future generations to take control of their health and well-being.

I highlight this particular event because events like these do not just happen overnight. Generally, someone has an idea. Some family member, neighbour or friend has experienced the support, help and assistance of an organisation such as Croí. I acknowledge the volunteers in County Roscommon, and in Castlerea specifically, who arranged this event last Friday night at 8 p.m. Susan Gaynor, Yvonne Ryan, Breege Callahan, Nial Tully and I formed the initial committee. I also wish to highlight that the transition year students of Castlerea Community School came on board. In organising a night-time event, they got involved in organising something they did not know much about, including health and safety, promotion and fund-raising. They took ownership of it, engaged and delivered what everyone who attended last Friday night agreed was a safe, engaging and very enjoyable evening. We are already talking about making this an annual event to support everything Senator Rabbitte just said about the delivery from Croí.

Senator Nelson Murray spoke earlier about the shortage of blood stocks in Ireland now and called for a debate on this matter. Effectively, the Senator was calling for more education on this matter. We need the very same discussion in relation to Croí and the work the organisation does to prevent heart disease and strokes. It would be very useful if a debate in this regard could be facilitated.