Stroke care at Watford General Hospital among best in the country

The stroke service at the West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust was recently handed an A rating, placing it in the top 18 per cent of services across England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The trust was one of only 42 out of 228 to achieve this top rating – a huge improvement from the E rating received two years ago.

Retired photographer Chris Overton is one of the many patients to have benefited from the high standards of care after suffering a stroke early one morning.

Mr Overton giving a lecture about photographing sculptures at the Henry Moore Studios and Gardens

“I remember at first I didn’t know what was going on and was waving my arms around,” he said.

“My wife is a speech therapist and she could hear my speech was slurred and she noticed that the right side of my face was weak, so she called an ambulance.”

Speaking of his treatment, Mr Overton, 68, said: “I received excellent care and I was supported all the way through my hospital stay by a very professional team who kept me and my wife informed throughout every step of recovery.

“In fact, the way everyone worked so well together it made me think what a nice team it must be to be part of.

“There were days when I couldn’t do much; even sending texts was hard work. But each day became easier with the help of the team who supported me with mental and physical exercises which helped me regain my mobility and generally get my life back.”

Summing up the rapid rise from E to A, Dr Tolu Adesina, the trust’s clinical lead for stroke services said: “We are delighted to have achieved the ‘A’ score and this really reflects the hard work the whole team has put into improving the service we offer.

“We are very proud of the quality of care we offer to our stroke patients. Team work is at the heart of everything we do.”