P-05-763 Introduce updated stroke advice - B.E.F.A.S.T. - and help save lives and livelihoods
P-05-763 Introduce updated stroke advice - B.E.F.A.S.T. - and help save lives and livelihoods
This
petition was submitted by Phillip Easton, having collected 105 signatures
online.
Petition text:
We
the undersigned request the Welsh Assembly to review the stroke advice
currently given to healthcare professionals and in other marketing literature.
At the moment this follows FAST - Face, Arms, Speech, Time. Some parts of the
brain affected by stroke don't deal with any of those functions, so adding
Balance and Eyes to create BEFAST will cover much more.
My
brain lesion indicating a cerebellar stroke was found incidentally during an
MRI for a different reason. This explains the sudden vertigo I experienced over
a year previously. Had this been recognised by the multiple medical
professionals I saw I could have received stroke treatment immediately and the
extent of brain damage may have been avoided. Had I known about it as a
member of the public I would have been aware of the risks of my symptoms.
Stanford University has been advising BEFAST for
years: http://scopeblog.stanford.edu/2014/05/02/be-fast-learn-to-recognize-the-signs-of-stroke/
Additional information:
My
personal story is that I live alone, and I suffered a sudden and intense bout
of vertigo in early December 2015. I was in bed for three whole days and was
unable to move to eat, drink, or anything else. Had I known this could have
been a stroke I would have called an ambulance immediately. I recovered enough
to work again, and about a week later I suffered another bout in public - an
ambulance was called. This calmed down far quicker, but a paramedic was still
with me for an hour before booking me an appointment with my doctor that
evening. At this time I had a further episode as I was entering the hospital
where my doctor was sited at the time. I was unable to work at all for at least
a month after this. After several visits to the doctor over the next three
months I was finally referred to ENT for vertigo as my symptoms weren't going
away as hoped. In late January 2017 I was finally allowed an MRI for lingering
ear pain and was checked for infection. As a consenquence, evidence of a stroke
was found - I was told this on 14th February 2017. More than 15 months after my
first symptoms.
I
am still unable to work full time hours, and am still undergoing tests with
regards to the cause of the stroke. It's possible that the first incidences
were TIAs and the full stroke that caused lasting damage was only the last one
- after the paramedic saw me. We cannot know if I would definitely have been
saved these issues if the condition was caught earlier - even if I'd just
started taking daily aspirin at the first sign to thin my blood (a common
procedure after suspected TIA). We do know that without that advice, I have
definitely suffered brain damage.
Thank
you for your attention in this matter.
Petition handover to the
National Assembly for Wales
Status
This
petition was considered completed by the Petitions Committee at its meeting on
21/11/2017. The Committee considered correspondence from the Stroke Association
together with further comments from the petitioner and agreed to:
- write to the Cabinet
Secretary for Health and Social Services to ask whether he considers that
there are any additional steps which could be taken by the Welsh
Government or the Stroke Implementation Group to ensure that health
professionals are aware of the additional symptoms of strokes, such as
problems with eyesight and balance; and in doing so
- close the petition, given
the advice provided by the Stroke Association and the view of the Stroke
Implementation Group that there is limited evidence to support changing
current messaging around stroke symptoms, and communicating the
Committee’s thanks to the petitioner for contributing to a useful
discussion on this issue.
It
was first considered by the Petitions Committee on 11/07/2017.
Assembly Constituency and Region
- Cynon
Valley
- South
Wales Central
Further information
Business type: Petition
Reason considered: Senedd Business;
First published: 26/05/2017