Laurie Hill suffers two strokes, says more survivor support needed in Geelong

Former City of South Barwon mayor Laurie Hill’s speech started slurring as he went to discuss a newspaper story with his wife.

Former mayor Laurie Hill is advocating for more support for people post stroke recovery to connect them with people who have been through similar experiences. It comes as National Stroke Week begins on Monday. Picture: Alan Barber

                                          

A former City of South Barwon mayor says he has learnt many lessons after suffering a stroke, describing himself as lucky to recover almost completely.

Laurie Hill was reading the morning newspaper in 2020 when he went to tell his wife Lynne about a story.

The now 76 year-old was slurring when he tried to speak and couldn’t say what he wanted to.

“Being a former nurse she immediately pushed me back into bed and rang triple-0, we were lucky the ambulance was there in about 15 minutes and they agreed that I had a stroke,” he said.

“They did have anti-clot medication on board which they gave me and got me to Geelong hospital within about 15 minutes.”

Mr Hill said he was sent to the Royal Melbourne Hospital for a clot retrieval.

“When I was heading to Melbourne there was no guarantees all was going to go well and I apparently had another stroke on the way,” he said.

Mr Hill said after four days in Melbourne he returned to Geelong and could walk with a walking stick, but was still sometimes slurring words.

He said during his recovery he spent time at Barwon Stroke Support Centre with other survivors.

“Hopefully many of us learnt a few lessons that weight, alcohol, smoking do make you more susceptible to a stroke,” he said.

“I have stopped a lot of that and all for the better.”

The centre has since closed, and despite setting up his own support group Blokes with Strokes, Mr Hill said a co-ordinated service was needed in the region.

Mr Hill said Blokes with Strokes met fortnightly and sometimes went on bus trips together but it was a small group and finances were a challenge.

“In the Geelong region we need to have a support group similar to what we had, where people can come and do painting, cooking, cards and activities with assistance from a co-ordinator,” he said.

National Stroke Week begins on Monday.

Stroke Foundation chief executive Lisa Murphy said stroke could strike anyone at any time, with one Australian experiencing a stroke every 19 minutes.

Stroke Foundation chief executive Dr Lisa Murphy says fast medical treatment will help people recover well from a stroke.

When a stroke strikes, brain cells start dying at a frightening rate of up to 1.9 million per minute, but prompt medical treatment can stop this damage,” she said.

“The vital first step in accessing these treatments is recognising the F.A.S.T. signs and calling triple-0.”

Dr Murphy said people could recover well if more people recognises the F.A.S.T signs, which stands for face, arms, speech and time.

The content summaries were created with the assistance of AI technology, then edited and approved for publication by an editor.

Originally published as Laurie Hill suffers two strokes, says more survivor support needed in Geelong