Former stroke patient now volunteering to help others
When Alan Bell suffered a stroke in 2023, he had no idea he'd later be playing a huge role in helping others recover after similar experiences.
The 67-year-old, from Wellingborough, is now working as a Peer Support Worker for NHFT with the same team of nurses who helped him when he was a patient.
He now volunteers to support about 8 to 10 stroke patients each week, offering kindness, insight and a personal perspective to help them with their recovery journey.
In January 2023, Alan - a former music teacher and semi-professional musician - became unwell and suffered what he would later realise was a stroke.
Strokes are caused by blood clots and broken blood vessels in the brain. Symptoms include dizziness, numbness, weakness on one side of the body, and problems with talking, writing, or understanding language.
Alan (pictured) was admitted, in the first instance, to Kettering General Hospital but was subsequently moved to the stroke ward at Northampton General Hospital, where after five days he was transferred to the stroke and rehabilitation unit at Isebrook Hospital in Wellingborough, where he began his journey to recovery. The hospital has 32 hospital beds, with 14 specifically for stroke rehabilitation, and they work with a variety of medical professionals to support the patient.
Having spent 54 days there, working with the team to regain the use of the right-hand side of his body, Alan was eventually discharged - with the aid of a walking stick - into the care of the community stroke team, who literally met him on his doorstep when he got home. They helped him to do those day-to-day things, he once took for granted, like climbing the stairs.
Alan recently shared his journey from patient to Peer Support Worker to NHFT's Board of Directors which can be viewed at www.nhft.nhs.uk/board.
Alan said: As it was my retiral year, during my stroke recovery I wanted to give something back which I felt was lacking, and got involved because I wanted to invest my time to help people understand strokes and how it has affected them. We speak about their lives, their stroke, their history, their friends and family and hopefully get to know them to help them come to terms with their situation. The nurses themselves do a wonderful job, but they are very busy, and don't have time to speak to patients in-depth as often as I can.
He added: "I then developed my strategy of the three P's to try to help them. Be Positive, Be Patient and above all Be Persistent. I felt that it worked for me so sharing this may work for others in a similar position."
Alan will also be dressing up as Santa on 23 November for the patients too!
Whether you're a former patient or service user, or not, you can find out more about getting involved with NHFT at www.nhft.nhs.uk/involved