Every year on 22 July, World Brain Day shines a spotlight on the importance of brain health and the growing impact of neurological conditions around the world.
This year’s theme, Brain Health: Access for All, highlights the need for timely diagnosis, coordinated care and equitable access to treatment, rehabilitation and community support. It also recognises the important role that lived experience, collaboration and community play in improving outcomes for people living with neurological conditions.
At a glance
Date
22 July 2026
Theme
Brain Health: Access for All
Hosted by
Neurological Council of WA
Alike WA attended
World Brain Day Breakfast Summit
Brain health influences every aspect of our lives. It affects how we think, communicate, learn, remember, move, work and connect with others.
While brain health includes mental health, it also encompasses the health of the brain and nervous system across the lifespan. Neurological conditions can affect people of any age and often have wide-reaching impacts on individuals, families and communities.
This year’s World Brain Day theme recognises that too many people continue to face barriers to neurological care. Long wait times, fragmented services, limited access to specialists and unequal access to support can all affect a person’s ability to live well.
The global message is clear: everyone deserves access to the care, information and support they need to achieve the best possible brain health.
Key discussions from the Breakfast Summit
Alike WA team members Nadia and Nichola attended the World Brain Day Breakfast Summit, joining clinicians, researchers, government representatives, lived experience advocates and community organisations from across Western Australia.
Speakers explored the importance of strengthening neurological care through earlier diagnosis, coordinated services and greater collaboration across the health and community sectors. Discussions also highlighted the development of the WA Neurological Health Strategy, recognising the importance of working together to improve outcomes for people living with neurological conditions.
The summit reinforced several shared priorities:
- increasing awareness of brain health
- strengthening prevention and early intervention
- improving navigation through the neurological journey
- building connected networks of community care
- ensuring fair access to treatment, rehabilitation, care and support
Why this matters to peer support
For many people living with neurological conditions, peer support provides understanding that cannot always be found elsewhere.
Connecting with others who share similar experiences can reduce isolation, build confidence and help people navigate complex health systems. Peer support groups also play an important role in helping families and carers access practical information, emotional support and local connections.
At Alike WA, we believe stronger outcomes are achieved when lived experience is recognised alongside clinical expertise. Events such as World Brain Day reinforce the value of listening to community voices and working collaboratively across the health, disability and community sectors.
Working together for healthier communities
The Breakfast Summit also provided an opportunity to reconnect with many of Alike WA’s member peer support groups, lived experience advocates, researchers, clinicians and partner organisations working across the neurological health sector.
These conversations remind us that meaningful change happens through collaboration. By bringing together lived experience, research, health care and community organisations, we can help create systems that are more responsive, more inclusive and better connected for everyone.
World Brain Day also marked the 34th anniversary of the Neurological Council of WA, alongside the launch of its refreshed brand identity.
The refreshed brand reflects the organisation’s ongoing role as a trusted source of neurological information and support, a connector across health and community sectors, an advocate for people living with neurological conditions, and a champion for brain health across the lifespan.
While the organisation’s look is evolving, its purpose remains the same: improving the lives, health and wellbeing of Western Australians impacted by neurological conditions.
World Brain Day reminds us that improving brain health is a shared responsibility.
Creating healthier communities means improving access to information, strengthening peer support, investing in coordinated care and ensuring people with lived experience are part of the conversations that shape future services and systems.
Alike WA is proud to stand alongside organisations across Western Australia that are working towards a future where brain health is valued, protected and accessible to all.