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Categories: northern ireland

FRUSTRATED: Health Minister Mike Nesbitt said progress on some aspects of the Stroke Action Plan had been delayed by budget constraints

Northern Ireland stroke professionals praised for their ‘tireless’ work for patients

More than 150 stroke professionals from across Northern Ireland came together to share insights on improving treatments for stroke patients.
The Stroke Professionals Conference, hosted by the Stroke Association on Wednesday, brought together nurses, occupational therapists, consultants, physiotherapists and other specialists from across a range of stroke care.
They heard the Health Minister

From left – Ciara Ferguson MLA, Nuala McAllister MLA, Alasdair O’Hara, Paula Bradshaw MLA, Kim Colhoun, Clodagh Dunlop, Paul McClean, Pam Tilson.

Stroke survivors demand wider access to life-saving treatment

Stroke survivors and campaigners have handed over a Stroke Association NI petition calling on the Health Minister Mike Nesbitt to make the stroke treatment thrombectomy available 24/7 in Northern Ireland.
The charity says it is vital that it is available for everyone who needs it no matter when they have their stroke.
The revolutionary procedure – where clots are plucked from the brain – ca

Northern Ireland Health Minister Mike Nesbitt with Dr Niamh Kennedy, chair of the Stroke Association’s Northern Ireland advisory committee, and Alasdair O’Hara, the charity’s Northern Ireland Director

Positive meeting with Northern Ireland Health Minister, but more urgency needed to make stroke a priority


Stroke Association Northern Ireland Director Alasdair O’Hara and Dr Niamh Kennedy, chair of the charity’s Northern Ireland advisory committee, met with Northern Ireland Health Minister Mike Nesbitt and representatives from the Department of Health today to discuss the key issues affecting stroke survivors and carers.

These are:
The need to make thrombectomy available 24/7 for every

Tango passion: Vincent Simone and Victoria Martin will star at a fundraising ball for the Stroke Association

Strictly star Vincent Simone will dance in Belfast to support stroke survivors

Vincent Simone, World champion dancer and star of TV’s Strictly Come Dancing, will be dancing with partner Victoria Martin at a charity ball in aid for the Stroke Association in Belfast on Saturday (27 April).
Victoria, a professional dancer from Newtownards whose career almost ended when she had a stroke, invited Vincent to headline with her at the Ceroc Ignite Spring Ball at the Titanic Hote

On the road again: Jeremy Johnston back behind the wheel of his VW Golf GTD

Little-known rule offers hope of driving for stroke survivors who lose peripheral vision

Jeremy Johnston was devastated when hemianopia – the loss of peripheral vision after his stroke – meant that he was no longer able to drive.
For four years he had to accept this, but thanks to twitter exchanges with former Australian rugby captain Michael Lynagh and a Liverpool University orthoptist, then a chance encounter with a stroke specialist in a Bulgarian ski resort, he’s back behind t

Team Effort: Staff from the Stroke Association and Altnagelvin Hospital at the launch event.

Altnagelvin Hospital patients now better informed about rebuilding their life after stroke

Stroke patients and their families at Altnagelvin Hospital now have access to a wide range of essential information to help them rebuild their lives, thanks to an initiative by the Stroke Association and Western Health and Social Care Trust.
Stroke changes lives in a moment and can leave stroke survivors and their families frightened and confused about how they can face the challenges ahead.

Personal plea: Stroke survivor Jeremy Johnston says better early interventions would lead to better outcomes and save money

Northern Ireland stroke patients “badly let down” by lack of progress on Action Plan 

Stroke patients in Northern Ireland are being badly let down by continuing delays in creating centres of excellence for stroke care, says the Stroke Association.

One year on from the launch of the Department of Health’s long-awaited Reshaping Stroke Care Action Plan, there are still no firm plans for the much-needed transformation of stroke services and development of ‘hyperacute stroke uni

Withdrawal of stroke services from Daisy Hill Hospital is extremely worrying

The unplanned withdrawal of stroke services from Daisy Hill Hospital in Newry, Northern Ireland, is extremely worrying.
Alasdair O’Hara, the Stroke Association’s associate director for Northern Ireland, said: "It’s long been acknowledged that stroke services across Northern Ireland need transformed to improve outcomes for patients and create more sustainable, high-quality services.
"Yet, d

WARNING OTHERS: Stroke survivor Paul Mclean with his wife Suzanne and son Lorcan

County Down stroke survivor urges people to check for ‘silent condition’ which can cause serious strokes

County Down stroke survivor urges people to check for ‘silent condition’ which can cause serious strokes
A stroke survivor from County Down is backing a charity’s plea for people to carry out a simple test on themselves in case they have a ‘silent condition’ which could cause a serious stroke.
Paul Mclean had atrial fibrillation or ‘AF’, where the heart beats with an irregular rhythm. When t

Stroke survivor Jessie McConkey from Coleraine shares how the Stroke Association's Speech and Language Therapy service in NI helped her to find her voice again following a stroke in 2019, left her without speech.

The Stroke Association in Northern Ireland shares survey to mark Aphasia Awareness Month

The fear of being unable to communicate has been laid bare in a new survey(i) of over 2,000 people across the UK. Research conducted by the Stroke Association reveals that nearly half of the respondents (41 %) can’t imagine living in a world where they couldn’t communicate. A world without communication is an everyday reality for the 350,000 stroke survivors across the UK (ii) like Jessie McConke

stroke survivor Paul Mclean with wife Suzanne Mclean and son Lorcan aged two. Stroke research means everything to the Mclean family after Paul survived a stroke in June 2016 thanks to the revolutionary treatment, thrombectomy.

Half of Northern Ireland residents unaware that stroke is one of the biggest killers in the UK, according to Stroke Association study

More than half of the NI public don’t know that stroke is the fourth biggest killer in the UK, according to new research by the Stroke Association1. The charity has released the survey findings as it calls for vital support to fund more research into the devastating condition.
A stroke happens when the blood supply to part of the brain is cut off, killing brain cells. The charity’s latest stud

Leading British Doctor - Dr Hilary Jones, is backing the Stroke Association’s campaign to urge the public to get checked for ‘silent’ health conditions that can cause a deadly stroke.

The Stroke Association in Northern Ireland urges public to check for ‘silent’ conditions that can cause deadly strokes

Leading British Doctor - Dr Hilary Jones, is backing the Stroke Association’s campaign to urge the public to get checked for ‘silent’ health conditions that can cause a deadly stroke. New data reveals over half (53%) of stroke patients have high blood pressure and one in six (16%) have an irregular heart rhythm known as atrial fibrillation [1]. Both conditions are often without symptoms. The

ON Stroke Prevention Day 2022, Noel Mitchell from Lurgan in Northern Ireland, shares his stroke story and how he made lifestyle changes to reduce his risk of having another stroke.

Nine out of ten stroke survivors in Northern Ireland would warn their younger self to change their lifestyle, according to Stroke Association survey

Nine out of ten stroke survivors would go back in time and urge their younger self to make lifestyle changes which may have prevented their stroke, a new UK-wide survey by the Stroke Association has revealed.
More than four out of five people surveyed say they hadn’t realised that they were at risk of a stroke.
But almost nine out of ten had since made lifestyle changes. This is important t

Jim McDowell from Belfast supporiting the Stroke Association's Hope After Stroke appeal.

Belfast man says hope after stroke is vital to recovery

30% of stroke survivors under the age of 60 say having a stroke cost them their job, one in ten say it caused their relationship to end and 6% even lost their home Over half of stroke survivors say they have never emotionally recovered from their stroke But a quarter felt first signs of hope less than a week after having a stroke – although one in seven have not felt any hope since it happened

Conor Mills at home in Belfast

Leading stroke charity funds first study into long-term impact of Covid-19 on stroke

The Stroke Association is funding the world’s first study to determine the long-term impact of Covid-19 on stroke survivors. Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic there have been widespread reports of adults with the virus also having strokes [1]. The charity announces this new study today, amid concerns that the virus may be causing more severe strokes in patients.

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The UK's leading stroke charity helping people to rebuild their lives after stroke

The Stroke Association. We believe in life after stroke. That’s why we campaign to improve stroke care and support people to make the best possible recovery. It’s why we fund research to develop new treatments and ways to prevent stroke. The Stroke Association is a charity. We rely on your support to change lives and prevent stroke. Together we can conquer stroke.

Stroke Association

240 City Road
EC1V 2PR London
UK