In Central Australia, covering an area of over 1.5 million km² and home to a population of approximately 50,000, delivering healthcare is often complex. The region's culturally diverse population includes 35% Aboriginal Australians, who are disproportionately affected by stroke. Stroke incidence in this area is high, with worse outcomes - both morbidity and mortality - compared to national averages. Stroke presentations are complex and patients are much younger – 55% of our strokes are ‘Young strokes’. Aboriginal Australians are over-represented in these statistics.
Over the past five years, stroke management in Central Australia has undergone substantial transformation, with significant work being done to ‘put stroke on the agenda’. The Alice Springs Hospital now has 24/7 access to specialist Telestroke services for reperfusion advice, established pathways for thrombolysis and clot retrieval transfers, a new full-time stroke nurse position, and stroke unit accreditation. While initial focus has been on in-hospital stroke pathways and management, current initiatives are expanding to encompass the entire stroke journey. This includes improving pre-hospital pathways to enhance access to time-critical stroke therapies and focusing on stroke recovery to facilitate more survivors returning home to country and to their communities.
Whilst stroke management has come a long way, community awareness of stroke remains low, and this combined with challenging access to healthcare due to geography and resources means much of the population does not have access to life saving stroke therapies.
A new project involving yarning circles with Aboriginal Liaison Officers and community members aims to gain insights into community perceptions and understanding of stroke and the patient journey. This initiative not only seeks to upskill healthcare workers and the community about stroke but also to develop culturally appropriate stroke education materials.