NSW Parliament Legislative Assembly Hansard National Stroke Week
September 18, 2017
Mrs LESLIE WILLIAMS ( Port Macquarie )
I thank members for agreeing to the reordering of this motion. The fact that there will be 56,000 strokes in 2017 means that one in six people will experience a stroke. Strokes happen to anyone; they do not discriminate. The important part of the public awareness campaign is the message that stroke is a time-critical, life-threatening event that is caused by a disruption of the blood supply to the brain. There are two main causes of stroke: a blood clot or plaque blocks a blood vessel in the brain, which is an ischemic stroke; or a blood vessel in the brain breaks or ruptures, which is a haemorrhagic stroke. Approximately four out of five strokes are ischemic. Stroke is one of Australia's biggest killers and is the leading cause of disability. Getting to an appropriate hospital as quickly as possible is critical for accessing assessments and time-critical stroke treatments.
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Ms SOPHIE COTSIS ( Canterbury ) ( 12:16 ): I commend the member for Port Macquarie on moving this important motion about National Stroke Week. As the member said, National Stroke Week is held from 4 September until 10 September. This motion allows us to acknowledge the importance of the week in increasing awareness and also ensuring that people are aware that a stroke is a medical emergency. The stroke statistics are astounding. We have had 56,000 new and recurrent strokes this year alone in Australia. That is one stroke every nine minutes.
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Mr JOHN SID OTI ( Drummoyne ) ( 12:22 ): The member for Canterbury mentioned that stroke kills more women than does breast cancer and more men than does prostate cancer. That is unbelievable in this day and age. In 2015 there were 10,869 stroke fatalities in this country. That is nearly 7 per cent of the approximately 160,000 deaths that year. Data indicates that many deaths from stroke occur amongst the elderly, but stroke also features as one of the top 10 leading causes of death among people aged 45 and over. I note that 65 per cent of stroke survivors suffer a disability that impedes their ability to carry out daily living activities unassisted. Rehabilitation of stroke survivors plays a critical and crucial role in our health system for patients and their care providers, yet this area is often overshadowed by care provided elsewhere in the hospital system. Rehabilitation services play a critical role in stroke care and in the broader context of the Australian healthcare system.
For more
Mr CHRIS PATTERSON ( Camden ) ( 12:26 ): I speak on the motion relating to National Stroke Week and raising awareness of stroke. As a community, we must all take an active part in doing everything we can to minimise lifestyle activities that can contribute to stroke. I acknowledge a group in my electorate known as the Stroke Recovery Group, which is run by Christine and David Crooks. Christine and David have been good friends of mine for many years. Last year I attended the launch of a pilot program for stroke victims in Camden. With the assistance of a small grant from Camden Council, the Camden Stroke Recovery Club launched a pilot program for stroke patients at Camden Hospital. The grant enabled the club to purchase and donate equipment to be used by inpatients at Camden Hospital. The equipment included five iPads, 10 portable digital versatile discs [DVDs] players and iTunes cards. Camden library also assisted with the donation of 700 DVDs, compact discs, talking books and free access to library services.
For more
Ms ELENI PETINOS ( Miranda ) ( 12:30 ): I speak in support of the motion of the member for Port Macquarie with respect to National Stroke Week. I join with the member for Camden in thanking her for bringing this important matter before the House today. I reiterate that stroke is a medical emergency and the treatment of stroke is time critical. Immediate medical attention is required for people suffering a stroke, which can be obtained by calling 000. Over the past two decades stroke deaths in New South Wales have fallen by 56 per cent—from roughly 63 to 27 per 100,000 . These declines have been driven by improvements in increasing public awareness of the FAST test, which the member for Port Macquarie went through earlier.
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Mrs LESLIE WILLIAMS ( Port Macquarie ) ( 12:34 ): In reply: I thank all the members who contributed to our debate today about National Stroke Week: the member for Canterbury, the member for Drummoyne, the member for Camden and the member for Miranda. I particularly thank the member for Canterbury because, as well as citing the statistics—more women die of stroke than die of breast cancer; more men die of stroke than die of prostate cancer—she also emphasised the sobering message that in Australia one stroke occurs every nine minutes, which is quite unbelievable. It is important to acknowledge that there are some lifestyle changes we can make to reduce the risk of stroke. I also commend the member for Canterbury for raising the issue of the need for multilingual information, particularly for elderly migrants across the State, including those in her electorate. I join her in acknowledging the work of the Stroke Foundation.
For more
TEMPORARY SPEAKER ( Mr Geoff Provest ): The question is that the motion be agreed to.
Motion agreed to.
I thank members for agreeing to the reordering of this motion. The fact that there will be 56,000 strokes in 2017 means that one in six people will experience a stroke. Strokes happen to anyone; they do not discriminate. The important part of the public awareness campaign is the message that stroke is a time-critical, life-threatening event that is caused by a disruption of the blood supply to the brain. There are two main causes of stroke: a blood clot or plaque blocks a blood vessel in the brain, which is an ischemic stroke; or a blood vessel in the brain breaks or ruptures, which is a haemorrhagic stroke. Approximately four out of five strokes are ischemic. Stroke is one of Australia's biggest killers and is the leading cause of disability. Getting to an appropriate hospital as quickly as possible is critical for accessing assessments and time-critical stroke treatments.
For more
Ms SOPHIE COTSIS ( Canterbury ) ( 12:16 ): I commend the member for Port Macquarie on moving this important motion about National Stroke Week. As the member said, National Stroke Week is held from 4 September until 10 September. This motion allows us to acknowledge the importance of the week in increasing awareness and also ensuring that people are aware that a stroke is a medical emergency. The stroke statistics are astounding. We have had 56,000 new and recurrent strokes this year alone in Australia. That is one stroke every nine minutes.
For more
Mr JOHN SID OTI ( Drummoyne ) ( 12:22 ): The member for Canterbury mentioned that stroke kills more women than does breast cancer and more men than does prostate cancer. That is unbelievable in this day and age. In 2015 there were 10,869 stroke fatalities in this country. That is nearly 7 per cent of the approximately 160,000 deaths that year. Data indicates that many deaths from stroke occur amongst the elderly, but stroke also features as one of the top 10 leading causes of death among people aged 45 and over. I note that 65 per cent of stroke survivors suffer a disability that impedes their ability to carry out daily living activities unassisted. Rehabilitation of stroke survivors plays a critical and crucial role in our health system for patients and their care providers, yet this area is often overshadowed by care provided elsewhere in the hospital system. Rehabilitation services play a critical role in stroke care and in the broader context of the Australian healthcare system.
For more
Mr CHRIS PATTERSON ( Camden ) ( 12:26 ): I speak on the motion relating to National Stroke Week and raising awareness of stroke. As a community, we must all take an active part in doing everything we can to minimise lifestyle activities that can contribute to stroke. I acknowledge a group in my electorate known as the Stroke Recovery Group, which is run by Christine and David Crooks. Christine and David have been good friends of mine for many years. Last year I attended the launch of a pilot program for stroke victims in Camden. With the assistance of a small grant from Camden Council, the Camden Stroke Recovery Club launched a pilot program for stroke patients at Camden Hospital. The grant enabled the club to purchase and donate equipment to be used by inpatients at Camden Hospital. The equipment included five iPads, 10 portable digital versatile discs [DVDs] players and iTunes cards. Camden library also assisted with the donation of 700 DVDs, compact discs, talking books and free access to library services.
For more
Ms ELENI PETINOS ( Miranda ) ( 12:30 ): I speak in support of the motion of the member for Port Macquarie with respect to National Stroke Week. I join with the member for Camden in thanking her for bringing this important matter before the House today. I reiterate that stroke is a medical emergency and the treatment of stroke is time critical. Immediate medical attention is required for people suffering a stroke, which can be obtained by calling 000. Over the past two decades stroke deaths in New South Wales have fallen by 56 per cent—from roughly 63 to 27 per 100,000 . These declines have been driven by improvements in increasing public awareness of the FAST test, which the member for Port Macquarie went through earlier.
For more
Mrs LESLIE WILLIAMS ( Port Macquarie ) ( 12:34 ): In reply: I thank all the members who contributed to our debate today about National Stroke Week: the member for Canterbury, the member for Drummoyne, the member for Camden and the member for Miranda. I particularly thank the member for Canterbury because, as well as citing the statistics—more women die of stroke than die of breast cancer; more men die of stroke than die of prostate cancer—she also emphasised the sobering message that in Australia one stroke occurs every nine minutes, which is quite unbelievable. It is important to acknowledge that there are some lifestyle changes we can make to reduce the risk of stroke. I also commend the member for Canterbury for raising the issue of the need for multilingual information, particularly for elderly migrants across the State, including those in her electorate. I join her in acknowledging the work of the Stroke Foundation.
For more
TEMPORARY SPEAKER ( Mr Geoff Provest ): The question is that the motion be agreed to.
Motion agreed to.