Coming up in the Irish Heart Foundation
Some events coming up in the next few months
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World Thrombosis Day focuses attention on the often overlooked and misunderstood condition of thrombosis. The 2026 campaign puts women’s health across the lifespan in focus, raising awareness of blood clot risks and prevention at every stage of life.
The Irish Heart Foundation Patient Support team marked World Thrombosis Day with a free online information event that focused on women and blood clots. Guest presenters included consultant haematologist, Prof Fionnuala Ní Aínle, GP and women’s health expert, Dr Louise Fitzgerald, and patient advocate, Alma de Bruijn.
Hospital Packs
The Irish Heart Foundation Patient Support team also prepared information materials for hospitals to promote and support awareness of thrombosis. Materials have been distributed and include meal tray liners, stickers for staff and pens. Keep an eye out for them in your local hospital.
Our Patient Support team recently had an information stand at VTE Together and a representative of our Thrombosis Council presented at the conference. VTE Together brings clinicians, researchers, and healthcare professionals from across Ireland, the UK, and beyond to share knowledge, discuss emerging evidence, and advance best practice in the prevention and treatment of venous thromboembolism.
Learn more about the causes and symptoms of thrombosis and blood clots, and the supports available for people affected, here.
This is a CPR awareness day where across the globe people and organisations work to share their CPR skills and knowledge.
Every year in Ireland thousands die from cardiac arrests – 70 per cent of these happen in the home. CPR is a vital step in the chain of survival after a cardiac arrest. If you have been taught CPR, you are 10 times more likely to respond appropriately in an emergency.
One of our key goals is to help save lives from cardiac arrest through CPR training. The more people who know CPR the more lives we can save. Learn to save a life by finding the right CPR course for you here
The countdown to the Dublin Marathon is well and truly underway, and we are incredibly proud to have more than 160 runners taking on this iconic challenge in support of the Irish Heart Foundation.
Every member of the team is dedicating months of training, determination and hard work to help raise vital funds for our work supporting people and families affected by heart disease and stroke across Ireland. Their efforts will help fund lifesaving CPR training, heart health education, patient support services and research that has a real impact on communities nationwide.
We are so grateful to each and every runner who has chosen to wear the Irish Heart Foundation colours on marathon day. The commitment and generosity shown by our team is truly inspiring, and we cannot wait to cheer them on every step of the way.
If you already have a place in the Dublin Marathon and are looking for a cause to support, we would be absolutely delighted to welcome you to Team Irish Heart. By fundraising for the Irish Heart Foundation, you’ll join an amazing community of supporters who are helping us create healthier hearts and longer lives across Ireland.
Together, we can make every mile matter.
Already have your marathon place? We’d love to have you on Team Irish Heart. ❤️🏃♀️🏃♂️
For more information, please contact mcollinsoregan@irishheart.ie
World Stroke Day 2026 takes place on Thursday, 29th October and will spotlight the life-saving importance of knowing the signs of stroke and the need to #ActFAST. With 1 in 4 of us at risk of stroke in our lifetime, it’s in everyone’s interest to know the signs of stroke. Time lost is brain lost and seeking emergency care as soon as symptoms are spotted saves lives and can enable treatments that improve our chances of a full recovery.
To mark the day, the Irish Heart Foundation Patient Support team will be hosting a series of free insightful online talks on 29th October, featuring leading experts in stroke care and recovery.
Dr Ken Monaghan, Clinical Neuropsychologist
Time: 10am – 11am
Register here
Carisa Sheridan, Irish Heart Foundation Dietitian
Time: 1.30pm – 2.30pm
Register here
Martin Quinn, Stroke Survivor and Advocate
Time: 3.30pm – 4.30pm
Register here
The Irish Heart Foundation will host the All-Island Stroke Conference on 19th October in Croke Park in conjunction with our partner organisations, Stroke Association Northern Ireland, Northern Ireland Multidisciplinary Association of Stroke Teams (NIMAST), Northern Ireland Chest Heart & Stroke (NICHS), Cork Stroke Support and Croí.
This one-day conference brings together stroke healthcare professionals including clinicians, researchers, rehabilitation specialists, policymakers, stroke advocacy organisations and community partners to reflect on past achievements, examine current practice, and the future of stroke care, with a programme for the day that showcases new research in stroke prevention, acute care, and life after stroke. To find out more, visit the conference website.
We are delighted to be supported by sponsorship from Boehringer Ingelheim, Brainomix, Medtronic, MSD, and Pfizer.
This December, challenge yourself to embrace the cold and make a real difference by taking part in the Irish Heart Foundation’s 12 Dips in December, proudly sponsored by Daybreak.
The challenge is simple: complete 12 dips throughout December and raise vital funds to support the Irish Heart Foundation’s lifesaving work. Whether you’re a seasoned sea swimmer or a complete beginner looking for a new challenge, 12 Dips in December is a fun and rewarding way to boost your wellbeing while helping others.
Every participant will receive an exclusive 12 Dips in December beanie, perfect for keeping warm before and after your cold-water adventures. Participants who complete all 12 dips and fundraise will also receive a souvenir medal, recognising their incredible achievement and commitment to heart health.
Every dip you take and every euro you raise will help the Irish Heart Foundation continue its work preventing heart disease, thrombosis and stroke, supporting patients and families, funding vital research, and teaching lifesaving CPR skills in communities across Ireland.
Gather your friends, family, or local swimming group and take on the challenge together. Share your progress, post your photos, and inspire others to get involved as you tick off your 12 dips throughout the month.
So, pull on your beanie, brave the cold water, and make every dip count this December. Sign up, start fundraising, and help create happier, healthier hearts across Ireland.
12 Dips in December. 12 chances to make a difference. One incredible cause.
For more information, please contact jconway@irishheart.ie
We’re excited to once again partner with Daybreak who will promote the challenge throughout their network of stores, with staff and customers taking part. This campaign was a huge success in 2025, raising vital funds for Irish Heart Foundation services.
We have refreshed the Be Active landing page on the website to make it easier for you to find the support that best fits your physical activity needs. The new layout introduces three dedicated subpages designed to guide you through your chosen path:
Each of these pathways includes updated, practical content, tailored to support you at every stage of your physical activity journey.
A new ‘Move More’ video has been added to the landing page, highlighting the importance of building movement into everyday life and encouraging small, sustainable steps toward better heart health.
Finally, we have added a subsection to our very popular Couch to 5K. This section has a newly developed walking plan and an updated running plan, offering accessible options for beginners and returners alike.
We are delighted to continue our partnership with Hidden Hearing into 2027. We celebrated a successful first year of our nationwide health partnership, which has delivered thousands of free hearing and heart health checks to communities across Ireland. This collaboration brings together expert Irish Heart Foundation nurses, Hidden Hearing specialists and both organisations’ Mobile Health Units to offer free, accessible preventive healthcare directly to people in their local communities.
This initiative visits marts, shopping centres, festivals, libraries, local clubs and community groups, making it easier than ever for people to access essential health checks without the need for an appointment.
You can check out the locations of upcoming health checks here
❤️ Take a journey through six decades of history, achievements, advocacy, and impact in our special virtual exhibition.
Explore and reflect on the difference made by the Irish Heart Foundation over the last 60 years. ❤️
Visit the virtual exhibition here
This autumn, the Smokefree Generation Alliance will launch its campaign calling for legislation to prohibit the sale of tobacco products to anyone born on or after 1 January 2009. Bringing together public health, patient, professional and youth organisations from across the island of Ireland, the Alliance is responding to the UK’s Tobacco and Vapes Act, which will raise the legal age of sale across all four UK nations, including Northern Ireland, by one year every year from 2027.
In the Republic of Ireland, the legal age of sale of tobacco will increase to 21 on the 1st of February 2028. Northern Ireland and Great Britain will move ahead to 22 by 2030, leaving the island of Ireland out of step. The Alliance is urging that smokefree generation legislation be passed and implemented by 31st December 2029 to ensure alignment and protect public health.
The campaign will be presented to political representatives at a launch event in November to secure the support needed to make this a reality.
22nd November, Monkstown Church of Ireland Church, Co Dublin, 2pm
A remembrance ceremony for all families and friends who have lost a loved one to sudden cardiac death.
Find out more and register here
Fatigue Management-Online
6 weeks, 1.5-hour sessions. Stroke members only.
Commencement date: Thursday, 22nd October, 11am-12.30pm
The Fatigue Management Programme is a series of Zoom workshops delivered over six weeks. It provides a supportive space for participants to come together and learn more about fatigue, what causes it, how it affects daily life, and why it is a common challenge after illness or health changes.
Through shared learning and practical discussion, participants are supported to understand their own experience of fatigue and identify strategies to manage it more effectively. The programme focuses on helping individuals develop personalised approaches so they can better balance energy, reduce the impact of fatigue, and improve overall quality of life.
Enquiries to strokeservices@irishheart.ie
Aphasia-Friendly Café
6 weeks, 1-hour sessions. Stroke members only
Commencement date: Thursday, 12th November, 11am-12.00pm
This 6-week programme is structured specifically for people with aphasia and associated challenges such as Apraxia of Speech and Dysarthria.
At the Aphasia-Friendly Café we will explore a variety of topics and coping strategies. Participants will receive information in advance by email.
These structured but informal gatherings can bring the conversation and shared camaraderie of the group into the comfort of participants’ own homes.
It is important to note that this is not speech-language therapy. Rather, it is a platform where people living with communication difficulties can learn how to navigate the challenges they encounter in day-to-day conversations.
Enquiries to strokeservices@irishheart.ie
Ireland international Orla Prendergast is supporting the Irish Heart Foundation after losing her father to heart disease, encouraging people across Ireland to take small steps to protect their heart health.
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