Lost without Words Campaign
The Lost without Words campaign has been launched to highlight the needs of the estimated 250,000 - 300,000 people in the UK who live with a communication disability following a stroke.
Speechmatters - Part of The Stroke Association and the Royal College of Speech & Language Therapists NI (RCSLT) jointly hosted a high profile launch for the NI 'Lost without Words' campaign on Wednesday 4th June 2008 at the Long Gallery Stormont.
Over eighty guests consisting of health professionals, MLA's stroke survivors attended the event which was officially opened by the Minister for Health, Social Services and Public Safety, Mr. Michael McGimpsey.
Michelle O'Neill, Deputy Chair of the Health, Social Services and Public Safety Statutory Committee began proceedings by officially welcoming all guests to the launch. Speechmatters Patron Noel Thompson chaired the event and welcomed Jackie White, Chief Executive of Speechmatters and Rosalind Rogers, Chair of the RCSLT onto the stage.
Both Jackie White and Rosalind Rogers outlined key recommendations regarding speech & language therapy provision in Northern Ireland following the successful Lost without Words research and RCSLT survey.
Noel Thompson talked to Nicola Harkin who is a Speechmatters - Part of The Stroke Association service user and lives with aphasia. Stroke survivor, Dr Phillip Reilly also spoke about his experiences. Both Nicola and Phillip had a profound impact on the audience and the Minister.
For more information about Lost without Words campaign contact the Communications Team on 028 9050 8051 or visit The Stroke Association website.
Every 5 minutes someone in the UK has a stroke