"My mother's stroke care"

It has taken me a while to process my mother's stroke care journey, but I felt the generally exceptional care and therapy she received needed highlighted and commended.

My mother was admitted to Ward A6 in March, and I was immediately reassured by the high level of ward hygiene, the organised nature of the ward and all the stroke information and literature available.

Over the course of the next 5 weeks I would get to know the staff very well. The personable and approachable nurses, were kind and very skilled. Girda, Shannon, Abi, Saoirse, Nicole, Emma, Roisin, Niamh, and Atalya all helped my mum on her journey, as did others, apologies for not catching their names.

Mum's circumstances meant she found using the cardboard commode liners as bed pans very difficult. The nurses dealt with this issue (which was outside their control and a limitation of their environment) with such sensitivity and a person centred approach.

I will always be thankful to them and all the HCA staff (Alena/ Allannah and Victoria from memory) who helped my mother with alternatives to the very painful and difficult commode liners.

Also key in my mother's journey were the Physio staff -  Pauline, Niamh, Aoife, Val and Craig. They raised her spirits on even the darkest days, and gave me hope that there could be a quality of life ahead.

The Occupational Therapy staff also played a huge role in her recovery. Eithne, Kira, Meghan and Sammy ensured she had early seating, worked with their Physio colleagues to establish Stedy transfers that helped her use the toilet, ensured she was safe to shower (which lifted her mood enormously) and started her upper limb rehab. Their support was invaluable in those early dark days.

Rebecca, the communication SLT, gave my mother hope and direction when slowly regaining her voice. She was  calm and collected, and her reassuring manner allowed  my mother to explore her early voice and language in a safe place.

Kelly the Stroke Nurse organised her transfer to Whiteabbey in a reassuring way and played a key role in ensuring pain relief was well established prior to transfer.

I would also like to mention the ward domestic, Darren, whose work was exceptional. He was very diligent and his high standards of work did not go unnoticed.

Finally I would like to mention Dr Joyce. He ensured my mother's neuropathic pain was well dealt with and well controlled before she left his care.

In addition, the entire ward staff allowed the pragmatic decision to allow me more freedom with visiting and feeding to ensure my mother's nutritional status was not compromised when she refused the prepacked thicken meals. Such a patient centred decision the aided the swift removal of her NG tube and ensured she avoided a PEG tube. These decisions  allowed her to really make the very most of her rehab in Whiteabbey when the time came.

Having worked in health care for many years, it took me to be on the other side to truly realise how those tiny gestures, those kind words, that few minutes to make patients and family comfortable really do count as much as the big stuff. Those small things really do help when you are in a dark, bleak place. When you feel you've had a tough day and feel under valued and not appreciated, remember your small acts of kindness help people every day. They may not say, they may not know your name, but that cup of tea, that arm on the small of their back, that light hearted story about your own family, might just have helped pull them out of a very dark pit. Thank you all so much. We are forever grateful