Community News

Throughout Stroke and Aphasia Awareness Month, people across the stroke care continuum came together to raise awareness of stroke signs and symptoms and the importance of seeking emergency care without delay.

Across Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox and Addington (KFLA), Hastings Prince Edward (HPE); and Lanark, Leeds and Grenville (LLG), stroke survivors, health care providers, community organizations, hospitals, first responders, municipalities, local politicians and community partners all played a role in getting the FAST message out.

More than 1, 000 FAST posters, magnets, bookmarks and other stroke awareness materials were shared across the region in June alone, helping bring this important message into community spaces and everyday conversations.

The Stroke Network of Southeastern Ontario (SNSEO) offers Stroke Care Field Training Experiences to support health care professionals across the stroke continuum.  These learner-driven opportunities connect individuals or groups with stroke care experts through one-on-one or small group sessions, strengthening practical knowledge, hands-on skills, and confidence in stroke care.

Recovery after stroke involves more than physical rehabilitation. It also includes emotional healing. Individuals recovering from stroke and their care partners have shared that mental health supports are critical, yet too often fragmented, costly, or hard to navigate.

The workshop, “Communicating with Persons with Aphasia:  Putting it Into Practice”, was hosted in partnership with Providence Care Hospital in Founder’s Hall.  The 55 participants included a variety of health care providers from acute care, rehabilitation, complex continuing care, outpatient, the community, long-term care and other related settings. Despite having run this event last year, the large number of participants and the need for a wait list for this event demonstrated the keen interest of those who care for people with aphasia to learn more and refresh their knowledge and skills.

On October 24, 2025, the Stroke Network hosted the Community Stroke Rehabilitation (CSR) Forum, bringing together community therapists, rehabilitation assistants, and managers from across the region. The goal of this event was to share learnings from CSR related work within the region and to highlight clinical insights that support the CSR Model of Care. A visiting CSR team from Sudbury joined the day and generously shared their experiences and approaches to deliver the CSR Model of Care with a patient centred approach embracing individualized strategies for goal attainment and community re-integration.

June is Stroke Month, and the Stroke Network of Southeastern Ontario wishes to extend a wealth of gratitude to stroke care providers across the region and across the care continuum. Persons with stroke in our region are in good hands, and we are grateful for your tireless dedication to helping persons with stroke and their loved ones regain their health and their quality of life.

Each June, communities across Canada come together to recognize Stroke Awareness Month and Aphasia Awareness Month – two critical observances that shine a spotlight on prevention, early recognition, recovery, and the communication challenges that many stroke survivors face.

The recently released Community Stroke Support Services:  Southeastern Ontario Annual Report for 2023-24 highlights the extraordinary work being done to help people living with stroke remain at home longer with help to better manage their health and improve their sense of well-being: “Being able to talk to a group of people that have been through something similar makes one feel not alone.”  Given the level of disability experienced by people living with stroke and the added stress on their caregivers, stroke support in the community is an essential part of the healthcare system.

Each year, the Stroke Network of Southeastern Ontario and Ontario Health atHome review the Community Stroke Rehab Program. The latest review for the 2023/24 fiscal year found that 542 stroke patients received community-based rehabilitation, which is consistent with the previous year. The number of therapy visits by rehab assistants increased by 178 per cent from 459 in 2022/23 to 1,277 in 2023/24, with 95 patients across the southeast area receiving at least one visit.

The Stroke Network of Southeastern Ontario wants to congratulate the Providence Care Outpatient Stroke Rehabilitation Program team for their successful program launch! The multidisciplinary team shown above, pictured left to right, includes Olivia Manning (Project Coordinator/Physiotherapist (PT), Zanna Farmer, Occupational Therapist (OT), Jen Tam, Physiotherapist (PT), Nick Van Lier Social Worker (MSW/RSW), Sheryl Gibson, Program Supervisor, and Teresa Whalen, Speech Language Pathologist (SLP) in addition not present for the photo are therapy assistant(s) Allie Palmer, Deanna Mallette, Megan Dijkema (OTA/PTA).  The program will soon include a Communication Disorders Assistant (CDA) another important allied health professional in stroke care.