Stroke care leaders join forces in Newcastle to shape future of treatment and recovery

Australian and international experts in stroke prevention, treatment and rehabilitation will convene in Newcastle this week for a significant conference, with the aim of improving care outcomes for the 46,000 Australians of all ages who experience a stroke every year. 

The 2025 Smart Strokes Conference will bring together nurses, allied health professionals, researchers, Aboriginal health workers, and individuals with lived experience of stroke to exchange ideas, participate in practical workshops and explore the latest clinical research. 

The theme of this year’s conference is ‘Achieving Excellence Through Empowered Voices and Collaboration’, and the program has a strong focus on innovation and equity, strengthening First Nations Peoples’ voices and culturally-appropriate care, strategies for living well after stroke, and advice on how to best support families and carers. 
 
Stroke Foundation Chief Executive Officer, Dr Lisa Murphy, says ensuring survivors of stroke receive the best time-critical stroke care and rehabilitation to support their recovery is a key priority to reduce chance of secondary stroke; as well as improve physical and emotional wellbeing, independence, readiness to return to work or school, and achieving better overall quality of life. 
 
“Smart Strokes Conference is a wonderful opportunity to have leading Australian and international experts, innovators and people with lived experience come together to share ideas and explore the latest advancements in stroke care,” Dr Murphy said.   

Kelly Andersen (NSW-based Stroke Care Coordinator and Co-Chair of the Smart Strokes 2025 Conference) is excited for the event. “Smart Strokes provides a unique forum to learn from an inter-professional community, including people with lived experience of stroke, to ensure that stroke care in Australia is optimised.” 

“Empowering the voices of survivors of stroke, as well as their families and carers, is critical in improving stroke care and making the recovery journey more person-centred. Smart Strokes conference provide an ideal forum for meaningful learning and exchange of ideas between leading clinicians, researchers and the stroke community,” Ms Andersen added. 

Every 11 minutes someone in Australia has a stroke. Around 1 in 4 survivors go on to have more than one stroke in their lifetime. Stroke is estimated to impact the Australian economy more than $9 billion every year, including healthcare, lost productivity, disability and unpaid care costs. 1 in 4 strokes strike Australians of working age, and there are now over 440,000 survivors of stroke living around the country, many with complex disabilities or unmet needs. 

“Access to evidence-based rehabilitation is the next frontier for the stroke community. Research related to recovery must be prioritised to advance practice and improve outcomes for survivors of stroke, as has been done in the acute phase of stroke care in recent years.” Dr Murphy added. 

Smart Strokes 2025 conference will be held on 15-17 October 2025, at the Newcastle City Hall. For more information, visit the conference website.  

Keynote speakers and program highlights include: 

• Dr. Janet Prvu Bettger, Professor and Vice Chair of Rehabilitation Research at the University of North Carolina; 

• Dr. Rosanne Freak-Poli is a life-course epidemiologist at Monash University, specialising in the understanding of social prescribing, loneliness and impacts on chronic disease and health; 

• Dr Heidi Janssen, physiotherapist and mid-career clinical stroke researcher at Hunter New England Local Health District and Hunter Medical Research Institute 

• Aunty Audrey Trindell, Gomeroi Community Elder and member of the Yarning Up After Stroke Project 

• Simone Owen, Clinical Trial Coordinator for the Yarning Up After Stroke Project, and Site Coordinator for the ESTEEM After Stroke clinical trial; 

• A/Prof Fernand Miteff, clinical neurologist and founder of the neurointerventional service at the John Hunter Hospital (NSW);  

• Gabrielle Clifford, Clinical Nurse Specialist in Endovascular Neurointervention at the John Hunter Hospital (NSW); 

• Jack Di Tommaso, Newcastle-based personal trainer and business owner; and a survivor of stroke