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The Stroke Association is calling for immediate actions from governments and local health systems across the UK to stem a ‘rising tide’ of demand on the NHS and UK health services that could ‘take years to solve’ if left unchecked.

It comes after a new report from the leading stroke charity unveiled that delayed calls to 999 due to concerns around COVID-19, unavailable treatments and cancelled rehabilitation therapies caused by the pandemic have left tens of thousands of stroke survivors with avoidable disability, exacerbated mental health problems and has taken a devastating toll on stroke survivors and their families.

The Stroke Association says that with enough physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy and mental health support, stroke survivors can recover, but only if governments and local health systems act immediately.

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Exploring the effects of the coronavirus pandemic on stroke survivors, the Stroke Association’s ‘Stroke recoveries at risk’ report, based on the experiences of 2,000 stroke survivors and carers, calls for all community rehabilitation – physiotherapy, speech and language therapy and occupational therapy – to meet national clinical guideline levels to ensure all stroke survivors can access the vital support they need and should be receiving.

In addition, the report says that stroke teams should follow up with all stroke survivors who had a stroke this year to make sure they have not been abandoned and are in line to receive the support they need to help them recover and cope with the effects of their stroke.

The stroke charity further advises that health and care systems prioritise increasing the provision of, and access to, mental health services to stem the significant emotional and psychological effects of experiencing a stroke, which have been made worse during the pandemic period with thousands of people left extremely anxious and isolated.

Governments and local authorities should provide adequate support to carers to cope with the additional pressures of COVID-19 to ease the burden of constant, round-the-clock caring for loved ones with less support than normal, the Stroke Association suggests.

There are 1.2 million stroke survivors living in the UK and over 100,000 strokes every year, making stroke the leading cause of adult disability. The Stroke Association estimates that there are over 35,000 stroke survivors who had a stroke during the pandemic and who require more support.

Although NHS stroke services remained open throughout, the charity’s new report shows that stroke care is on the precipice of a national crisis and risks thousands of stroke survivors’ hard-earned recoveries slipping backwards.

As outlined in the report, the level of care, rehabilitation and mental health support available was already letting down thousands of stroke survivors, unable to cope with the pre-pandemic levels of demand. When health and care systems begin returning services to normal, therapy waiting lists will be “swamped” with a backlog of thousands of stroke survivors, the Stroke Association warns.

Juliet Bouverie, Chief Executive of the Stroke Association, said: “Strokes didn’t stop because of the pandemic. Despite the tireless efforts of frontline clinicians who have gone to herculean efforts to maintain services under extremely difficult conditions, some treatments still became unavailable and most stroke aftercare ground to a halt. This means more stroke survivors are now living with avoidable, unnecessary disability.

“Stroke is a brain attack that affects 100,000 people a year – killing thousands and leaving others with complex and severe disability. Recovery is tough, but with the right specialist support and a ton of courage and determination, the brain can adapt after stroke.

“People under-estimate the trauma associated with the sudden life-changing experience of having a stroke. The degree of support that stroke survivors need to reframe and adjust to a new normal, often needing to cope with lifelong disability, is a lot more than people realise. We need to see increased access to mental health support, so stroke survivors can cope with their mental health issues, made worse by lockdown and ongoing uncertainty.”

These calls are a response to new findings from the Stroke Association that paint a picture of stroke patients struggling to recover and suffering more severe complex disability, as a direct result of the COVID-19 and the lockdown.

The report found that more than one-third of stroke survivors who had a stroke this year reported having not received enough rehabilitation, including physiotherapy. Additionally, just over half of stroke survivors have had therapy appointments or home care visits cancelled or postponed.

More than two-thirds of stroke survivors said they have felt more anxious and depressed, with some respondents saying they feel extremely isolated as they have been going days without social contact.

56 percent of carers also reported feeling overwhelmed and unable to cope, particularly those caring for someone who had a stroke this year (72 percent).

Juliet continued: “We need a big push to get rehabilitation, mental health services and carer support back on their feet. The right treatment and the right care makes the difference between days in hospital and months; the right rehabilitation makes the difference between walking again and needing care for the rest of your life. One stroke with no support risks an array of future problems.

“Without physiotherapy, a stroke survivor will have more falls, be more likely to catch pneumonia, will have to call an ambulance and spend more time back in hospital in a bed that a Covid patient could need.

“This generation of stroke survivors can rebuild their lives, but only if governments and health services act quickly and with genuine commitment. Neither current levels nor pre-pandemic levels of support were good enough. Without a change, there is going to be a stroke care crisis that will put massive pressure on the health and care services.

“We’re going to see a rising tide of demand for rehabilitation therapies that will take years to solve and could end in tragedy for tens of thousands. This means having another stroke, further disability or death. Our report offers clear, achievable recommendations for policy makers across the UK. We need to put a clear message to the people in power and you can do this by signing our open letter.”

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