Colours to Save Hearts

Colours to Save Hearts is a programme developed by the World Heart Federation with technical and financial support from the State of Geneva, Direct Relief, Foundation Le Petit Coeur, Edwards Lifesciences Foundation, Mended Hearts, the Heart Fund, Direct Relief, Instituto Nacional de Saúde (INS) and the Mozambique Institute for Health Education and Research (MIHER).

The project is being initially implemented in Mozambique, which has an estimated 3% incidence of rheumatic heart disease (RHD) – one of the highest rates among school-aged children in sub-Saharan Africa.

Colours to Save Hearts is a WHF project in Maputo, operated by MIHER and implemented by INS.

RHD is the most common acquired heart disease in people under the age of 25

RHD claims over 291,000 lives each year, mostly in low- and middle -income countries

Most RHD patients do not reach 40 years of age

Rheumatic heart disease is a preventable cardiovascular disease which affects 39 million people worldwide, mostly children and young adults. Mozambique has some of the highest rates of RHD in sub-Saharan Africa among school-age children, estimated at around 3%.

Colours to Save Hearts is an initiative aimed at raising awareness of rheumatic heart disease among children, teachers and parents, and educate them about the link between sore throat and rheumatic heart disease, how to recognise symptoms and what to do when they first appear.

Colours to Save Hearts comes at a time when the world’s focus on health is heightened by the COVID-19 pandemic. Underlying conditions such as rheumatic heart disease can increase a person’s risk of health complications if infected. Through increased awareness, improved access to treatment, and investment in affordable care, we can make RHD a disease of the past.

Ana Mocumbi Head of the Non-Communicable Diseases Division, National Health Institute of Mozambique

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It starts with a colouring crayon…

…but it doesn’t end there.

This project started as a small campaign to raise awareness about RHD among school-age children in Mozambique, using nothing but a colouring book and some colouring crayons. It has since evolved into a much more ambitious project, aiming to educate children, teachers and parents to detect the first signs of strep throat, to train health workers on RHD prevention, and to support the capacity of local hospitals for much-needed surgeries to repair or replace damaged heart valves.

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a classroom full of children learning about colours to save hearts

Our impact

Increase awareness of rheumatic heart disease and its warning signs among children, parents and teachers.
Give healthcare professionals the tools they need to monitor, diagnose and manage RHD and rheumatic fever in their communities.
Strengthen health systems and structures to enable early detection and swift referral when needed.
Increase awareness of RF and RHD, and the importance of prevention, among health authorities.
Support the capacity for cardiac surgery in local hospitals.

Watch the interviews of Prof René Prêtre, a renowned cardiologist and partner of WHF, and Prof Ana Mocumbi, Head of the NCDs Division at the National Public Health Institute Mozambique, and learn more about the importance of the Colours to Save Hearts programme.

Access the first year report

60,000

children in 24 schools

600

teachers

health professionals