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2022 Webinar Resource Centre

Welcome to the 2022 SAFE Webinar Series Resource Centre, to view the resources for each webinar in the series, please just click on the buttons to learn more.

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Getting back to work after stroke

Going back to work after a stroke is an important goal for many- but may seem impossible. Yet, despite impairments, a return to professional work is possible. This session provides practical help on doing this.

"Congratulations to you all👏🏻👏🏻 Very interesting presentations"

"Very good points made throughout the morning, thank you to all the speakers. So important to have the conversation early with patients regarding return to work."

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Fatigue after stroke: what can we do?

Fatigue after stroke is common and debilitating. Yet despite much research on the topic, there are many unanswered questions about fatigue and how best to manage it. Stroke survivors often report that clinicians do not talk to them about fatigue- and some only learn much later that it is a symptom of stroke. This session will provide an overview of the topic and the important issues for both clinicians and stroke survivors.

"Thank you Ruth, a wonderful insight into life with fatigue. Well done on your amazing improvements and skiing!"

"Your presentation left us with the feeling of hope. Very positive - thankyou"

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Physical activity: ‘Getting active without sweat and lycra!'

We know that it is important that stroke survivors are active. This session will include a summary of the evidence base for physical activity, how therapists support stroke survivors to get and stay physically active, and a stroke survivor sharing their tips and experiences. We hope that the session will help to bust some common myths about physical activity and stroke, including that it’s not all about sweat and lycra!

"As OTs working on a stroke rehab ward, we think these videos are fantastic! We have come up with some amazing ways to use them for both for individuals and in groups :)"

"What an amazing journey thank you for sharing your experience to help us help others"

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Be inspired and share control: the added value of self-management support

This webinar shares new ways of thinking about and building the evidence base on self-management. Drawing on examples from research and clinical practice...

"Self-management is a form of strength... strength of knowledge, strength of understanding and in the strength to trust in your ability to problem solve with the tools you've been given."

"Self management seems to be about supporting a person to discover themselves within a supportive relationship and facilitating them to set goals and giving them the freedom to try things with support initially and then within their own environments and daily lives"

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Be inspired and share control: the added value of self-management support

This webinar shares new ways of thinking about and building the evidence base on self-management. Drawing on examples from research and clinical practice, the session will inspire and challenge delegates to consider the potential of self-management support to deliver outcomes that matter most to stroke survivors.


Avril Drummond

Avril Drummond is Professor of Healthcare Research, and an occupational therapist, at the University of Nottingham, UK. Her main area of interest is stroke rehabilitation and she has undertaken large trials, studies and service evaluations.

Avril is a member of the Royal College of Physicians' Intercollegiate Working party for stroke, which produces the UK Stroke Clinical Guidelines. She is a former Chair of the UK Stroke Forum, she chaired the 'Life after stroke' domain for the Action Plan for Stroke in Europe and is a trustee of the UK Stroke Association.


Scott Ballard-Ridley

Scott Ballard-Ridley suffered a stroke in 2007 at the age of 22 which left him with significant physical impairments and without the use of his vision.

Prior to his stroke, Scott trained as a physiotherapist and since then he has worked in the NHS, for the Stroke Association and currently for social enterprise, Bridges Self-management, where he works with healthcare professionals on how they can work more collaboratively with patients in their care. Scott lives at home with his wife and three-year-old daughter.


Fiona Jones

Fiona Jones MBE is Professor of Rehabilitation Research at St George’s University of London and Kingston University. She has led multiple studies to evaluate self-management approaches within healthcare teams including in stroke, acute brain injury and major trauma.

In 2013, Fiona set up a social enterprise Bridges Self-management, which is an approach to self-management co-delivered with people living with complex long-term conditions and used by more than 500 acute and community rehabilitation teams across the UK. In 2014, Fiona led an NIHR funded study to evaluate the use of Experience–Based Co-Design to explore ways to increase therapeutic activity in stroke units, and is currently Co-lead for the Listen project (Long Covid Personalised Self-managemenT support- co-design and EvaluatioN). In 2017 Fiona was awarded an MBE for services to stroke rehabilitation.

Supporting Slides


Hanne Pallesen

Hanne Pallesen is a senior researcher and associated professor at the Hammel Neurocentre and University of Aarhus.

Hanne’s research interests include: remaking the body, disability, self-efficacy, self-management, self-identity and nature-based rehabilitation research, patient perspectives, interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral recovery after brain injury. She is a MSc and PhD supervisor, teacher and responsible for a Neurorehabilitation course at the Master Degree programme in Health Science, Aarhus University.


Mette Brandi

Mette Brandi is an occupational therapist, employed at the Neurocenter, Aarhus. She helped to develop and implement the Danish version of self-management STROKE 65+..

Supporting Slides


Lisa Kidd

Dr Lisa Kidd is Reader in Supported Self-Management in the School of Medicine, Dentistry and Nursing, University of Glasgow

Lisa's research interests include self-management, stroke, person-centred care, implementation science and patient and public engagement with research. Specifically, Lisa leads a programme of research focussing on the implementation of self-management support in stroke service provision, particularly how practitioners implement and embed self-management support, that is driven by people’s needs, experiences and priorities, in their practice and service provision.

Lisa inputs into the roll out of supported self-management as part of Scotland's Stroke Improvement Plan. She leads the Supported Stroke Self-Management Network, a network of practitioners, academics, policymakers with an interest in shaping stroke self-management research and practice, run in collaboration with Kingston/St George’s University, University of Southampton and Glasgow Caledonian University.

Communication in everyday life

Clearly communicating thoughts, ideas and expectations is a challenge in the lives of stroke survivors. In this webinar, the panel will address ways to overcome communication barriers for those with and without aphasia.

"Thank you for the excellent presentations including stroke survivors stories/experiences. I will definitely be aiming to embed some of these thoughts into my practice to empower my patients to be equipped for self management of their condition in order to give them quality of life as stroke survivors."

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Communication in everyday life

Clearly communicating thoughts, ideas and expectations is a challenge in the lives of stroke survivors. In this webinar, the panel will address ways to overcome communication barriers for those with and without aphasia.


Jean-Marie Annoni

Jean-Marie Annoni studied medicine in Geneva and specialised in neurology, behavioural neurology and neurosciences at hospitals in Zurich, Geneva, in the cantons of Valais and St. Gallen, London and Montreal.

Jean-Marie worked as a neurologist at the Geneva and Lausanne hospitals and is Professor of Neurology at the University of Friborg and a neurologist at the Friborg hospital, looking after neurological problems, and more specifically, memory and language problems, degenerative diseases and headaches.

For 20 years, his research has focused on the consequences of stroke, relearning after stroke and the cerebral organisation of language, particularly in bilingualism.

Supporting Slides


Alexia Kountouri

Alexia Kountouri had a stroke in May 2015 whilst she was studying for a PhD in the UK. Her right side was paralysed and she had to give up her studies.

She has had to learn how to adapt, cope and solve problems caused by her disability. She is now a social worker in Nicosia Municipality Multifunction Foundation, enabling vulnerable and marginalised people in Nicosia to become active and integrated into society. Alexia is also an Ambassador for stroke in Cyprus.

Supporting Slides


Jürg Schwyter

Jürg R Schwyter was Head of the English Department and Professor of English Linguistics at the University of Lausanne when he suffered a severe brain stroke. Numerous therapies later, he successfully re-integrated into professional life and taught at the University before retiring in 2020 to the post of Research Fellow.

As a linguist, his research interests now focus on aspects of language and the brain. He has a keen interest in aphasia, and the interrelationship of multilingualism and strokes. As a stroke survivor and aphasiac, he wants to inform the stroke community and the wider public about the impact of stroke on language, communication and multilingualism.

Supporting Slides


Mina Michalatou

Mina Michalatou is a member of the stroke support organisation, Hellenic Alliance for Stroke. She is a passionate archaeologist and in recent years she has been working as a teacher of Greek Language and/or Greek as a Second/Foreign language to children.

After her stroke, Mina’s goal became to positively impact the lives of young people by raising awareness about stroke. She is involved in the FAST HEROES 112 campaign of the Department of Educational and Social Policy of the University of Macedonia and member of the European Network Schools for Health in Europe Network Foundation.

Supporting Slides

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