Gail Morris

Action for Rehabilitation from Neurological Injury

Feedback from 2 day practical seminars in Newcastle

Through my work as a Personal Trainer, Exercise Referral Consultant and Cardiac Rehabilitation Instructor I have trained and rehabilitated clients with a wide range of medical conditions. However, I always felt that my knowledge, skills and therefore confidence, were always lacking whenever I was presented with a stroke survivor. At the time there were no courses available that offered an exercise professional the opportunity to learn these skills.

In July of 2008 I accepted a post as a Stroke Service Improvement Manager for the North of England Cardiovascular Network and took the lead on the Stroke Rehabilitation Project across the North East. Through this work I was able to establish that it wasn’t just me that felt my knowledge and skills in the stroke field needed improving. This was a problem across the region and due to this only stroke patients with a good level of recovery were being able to access Exercise on Prescription schemes around the area.

I was put in contact with Tom and between us we were able to arrange for Tom to come up to the North East to deliver two days of practical ARNI training to 17 qualified Personal trainers from the region. The training was great. It covered aspects of rehabilitation that are really important to stroke survivors being able to gain a better level of independence and help them to cope with day to day tasks (walking up/down stairs, getting up and down from the floor, coping with falls). The exercises were not just practical but also worked in being able to improve the stroke survivor’s strength and balance. Both Tom and Michaela (a stroke survivor who participated in the course) were an inspiration. It was also incredibly useful to see how the techniques we were learning were actually executed by a stroke survivor who had problems with arm or leg paralysis and muscle tone problems.  I’ve come away from the two days training feeling more confident that I have added more skills to back up my professional knowledge that will make a difference to someone’s life.

I’m looking forward to attending the two days theory training at Middlesex University and feel this will help to underpin the knowledge gained through the practical training. I have my own Sports Therapy Business and plan on being able to accept stroke survivors through this means and offer them rehabilitation in the future.

Gail Morris – Stroke Service Improvement Manager (NECVN)
BSc (Hons) Sports Science, MSc Chronic Disease Management, Advanced Diploma in Sports Therapy, Personal trainer, Exercise Referral Consultant, Cardiac Rehabilitation Instructor