Seven years after having a stroke mother-of-one-on Amber Stewart hasn’t stopped spreading awareness and has a message to all Australians.
“Don’t hesitate if you notice something is wrong or out of the ordinary, call triple zero straight away.”
That is exactly what Amber did in 2015. She was home alone in Yeppoon with her 10-month-old son, River, when her right leg suddenly stopped working and she was unable to communicate properly.
“I couldn’t send messages to my leg. I knew how to walk but my brain wasn’t sending the message.”
The then-33-year-old was having a stroke. She recognised it was an emergency and called an ambulance straight away. Help arrived within 15 minutes, and she was rushed to Rockhampton hospital to receive emergency treatment.
The next day Amber could walk again, and she does not have long-term physical effects. She attributes her good physical recovery to receiving emergency treatment quickly.
“The quicker you can get to hospital the more likely you are to have a good recovery.”
Every year, Stroke Foundation surveys thousands of Australians on their awareness of the most common signs and risks of stroke. The 2021 F.A.S.T survey of 5000 people revealed Capricornia residents’ awareness to call triple zero as a first response to someone having a stroke has increased by 10 per cent in just one year.
Stroke Foundation National Manager Stroke Treatment, Kelvin Hill, says this means more people will receive crucial emergency treatment sooner.
“Every minute counts when a stroke strikes. The sooner an ambulance is called and the faster a patient receives the urgent medical treatment they need, their chance of survival and a good recovery increase greatly.”
However, the study also revealed that one in three Capricornia residents could not recall any of the F.A.S.T signs of stroke unprompted, which means they may not know that they need to call for urgent help.
That’s a statistic Stroke Foundation aims to change particularly because regional Australians are 17 per cent more likely to suffer a stroke than those living in metropolitan areas.
Mr Hill says through community effort more people can learn and remember the signs.
“Stroke Foundation’s aim is for someone in every workplace and household to know the F.A.S.T acronym. I’d encourage everyone to learn these signs and tell their friends and family because we know being informed truly saves lives and leads to faster treatment.”
