Wednesday, 1 May 2024

Young Stroke Service

Emma VULIN (Pakenham) (10:31): This morning I was pleased to emcee a parliamentary breakfast for the Young Stroke Service. The Young Stroke Service supports adults aged 18 to 45 who are affected by stroke. Eighteen people in this age bracket suffer a stroke in Australia each and every day. The expert team from the Young Stroke Service assist with stroke care and connect stroke survivors, families, clinicians and researchers.

Many of you know that I suffered a significant stroke when I was 36, and I am so proud of the work being done here in Victoria by the Young Stroke Service in collaboration with the Florey. Unfortunately, stroke is often misdiagnosed in young adults, just like I experienced. The Young Stroke Service team and people like the incredible Brooke Parsons, an inspirational woman who has her own story to tell, are finding ways to ensure this group are not overlooked and that health services can cater for their needs. It is important work to further the understanding of the lifelong effects of stroke in people to continue improving our health services.

I have been privileged to visit the Florey at the Austin twice and meet the intelligent and compassionate team that work there, and we are so lucky to have them here in our state. I know that they are one of the world’s leaders in brain research. A big thankyou to Florey director Trevor Kilpatrick, Professor Vincent Thijs, Professor Julie Bernhardt, Nerida Larkin, Dana Wong and the entire team, and a big shout-out to the Stroke Foundation, who support so many people of all ages who have been touched by stroke. We sincerely thank you all for the work that you do each and every day.