In 2025 Wessex Global Stroke Partnerships hosted two Commonwealth Fellows, one from Ghana and one from The Gambia. They visited for a period of approximately 6 weeks and spent time with stroke teams in Winchester, Bournemouth and Bristol. At the end of the 6 weeks a recorded conversation was held to capture the fellows experiences, below are some quotes taken from the conversation.
What were your first impressions of stroke care in the UK?
Teamwork & Skills
“We notice the high skill sets of the stroke team members, in terms of therapy, in terms of rehabilitation.. the consultant and registrar are so wonderful and everybody is well aware of their roles and they all play them well”
“My impression has been one of excellence in terms of health care here”
Is there anything in particular you will take back to your teams?
MDT working & delivery of care
“Everybody knows what they are about, everybody has a role to play… there’s leadership that co-ordinates all this process, it’s been magnificent to see.”
“More importantly, the coordinated care… getting different skilled health workers to work as a unit gives better results and outcomes.”
Opportunities to develop
“If we are able to train [our] referral facilities on how to take care of the stroke patient, then in the long run we’ll be able to minimize the morbidity that comes with it.”
“We are thrilled to have this opportunity to be able to see what goes on here...to compare and to send some of the information we pick up here to our country”
Is there anything that could be improved in terms of stroke care in the UK?
Cultural differences around discharge & length of stay
“You tend to keep patients too long on the wards...you may not have family support here like we do in Africa”
“You wait until the patient is a certain level of independence before the patient comes home…the maximum length of stay in our facility is usually 5 to 7 days...we are able to discharge our patients quicker with confidence that the relatives at home care for the patient”
What were the highlights of the visit?
Staff Competence
“[Observing] the professionalism and the diligence with which people do work...is amazing. People are committed to what they're doing, they pay attention... and they're responsible. You can have beautiful buildings and infrastructure, but if the people are not well-trained, it doesn't yield…and this really has been the highlight of all of this”
Optimism for the Future
“We are hopeful that this will not be the end… that we’ll be sharing knowledge rather than everybody wanting to run to one place.”
Reflections on the partnership as a whole
“They are just using what is available to us to teach us to better our healthcare… It is not a one-sided collaboration... it is our skills training ”
