Bunbury grandfather saved by quick-thinking wife

Quick thinking has helped save a Bunbury grandfather’s life, his wife quickly spotting the signs of stroke and getting him the care he needed. Despite always being fit and healthy, with no underlying medical conditions, Michael Hepburn said there were no warning signs or underlying medical conditions in the lead up to the first symptom — suddenly losing the ability to speak. When the left side of his face started to droop, his wife Hannelore knew her husband was having a stroke. “My wife recognised the stroke signs when I could not talk to her and drove me immediately to the emergency department,” Mr Hepburn said. Thanks to his rapid arrival at the hospital, Mr Hepburn was eligible for thrombolysis — a therapy which can only be given within four and a half hours of the first stroke symptoms. Thanks to Mrs Hepburn’s fast thinking, Mr Hepburn arrived at Bunbury Regional Hospital’s emergency department within an hour of the symptoms. A scan of Mr Hepburn’s brain revealed a big blood vessel in his brain was partially blocked by a clot, causing the stroke. Although one small area was already affected, a big area of his brain remained at risk of permanent damage. The thrombolysis therapy used clot-busting medicine to dissolve the blood clots, saving Mr Hepburn’s life. Now fully recovered, Mr Hepburn is back to spending time with his family, tending to their bush block, working part-time and exercising regularly. “I can’t praise staff at the Bunbury Regional Hospital enough for their swift action, care and professionalism,” Mr Hepburn said. WACHS South West regional stroke coordinator Renee Dehring said the success of the treatment was a team effort, helped by a partnership with WA Acute Stroke Pathways, which gives country clinicians access to specialist neurology advice from a tertiary hospital. For Mr Hepburn, this meant that after assessment by the medical team in Bunbury a neurologist in Perth also reviewed his care and helped plan his treatment. ‘’Everyone worked so quickly to get Michael the care he needed and it is great that country people have access to life-saving treatments delivered by dedicated clinicians, so close to home,” Ms Dehring said. In 2020, 2706 West Australians experienced a stroke for the first time and more than 43,000 stroke survivors live among us.