Wednesday 2 March 2016. CSH Surrey’s 'Life after Stroke' workshops have today been named official 'Runner Up' in the ‘Support for Caregivers, Friends and Family’ category of this year's Patient Experience Network (PEN) National Awards. This follows the announcement earlier this week that the workshops have also reached the finals in the Community Nursing category of the national Royal College of Nursing Awards.
The workshops were created by CSH Surrey's Stroke Specialist Nurse, Erika Frohlick, who felt compelled to act after listening to stroke survivors, relatives and caregivers raise the same questions and concerns following supported discharge (where medically-fit patients return home with intensive nursing/therapy input). Erika involved colleagues from the wider multi-disciplinary neuro-rehabilitation service in designing and delivering her bespoke ‘Life after Stroke’ workshops, with the aim of improving the care and service received by stroke survivors and their families.
Involving patients/families to ensure the workshops meet their needs has been critical. As a result, the workshops have evolved from 20-minute education sessions into two, 2 hour workshops. Attendees report feeling better supported and empowered to deal with life after stroke following the workshops, which now form a core part of CSH Surrey’s stroke service.
One patient recently reported: “I felt like I was lost in the ocean and you were my rock.” She had been a supported discharge patient, had attended the workshops and learnt about signs and symptoms of stroke. She recently acted on her new-found knowledge and attended A&E immediately on suspecting a further stroke. She was thrombolysed successfully and was left with only minor finger tingling as evidence of a second possible major stroke.
In 2014 the workshops were recognised by the NHS South East Coast Clinical Senate as an example of best practice stroke care.
In November 2015 the workshops were named 'Runner up' in the ‘Patient Champion’ category of the regional Kent, Surrey and Sussex NHS Leadership Awards. The winner of this category, CSH Surrey Physiotherapist Vicky Kershaw, has now been put forward for the national NHS Leadership Recognition Awards for her work with dementia patients. The winners will be announced at a ceremony in London on Tuesday 8th March 2016. The winner of the Community Nursing category in the RCNi Awards will be announced in London on Friday 6th May 2016.