Moderated Poster Australian and New Zealand Stroke Organisation Conference 2025

Three-year update on Australia’s Young Stroke Service (123298)

Karen Borschmann 1 , Sarah Amesz 1 , Dominique A Cadilhac 2 , Nadja Korajkic 1 , Natasha A Lannin 3 4 , Brendan Major 5 , Emma Power 6 , Brooke Parsons 1 , Tanya Rose 6 , Dana Wong 7 , Vincent Thijs 1 8 , On behalf of the Young Stroke Service Project Team . . 1
  1. The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Heidelberg
  2. Department of Medicine, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash Health, Melbourne
  3. School of Translational Medicine, Melbourne
  4. Alfred Health, Melbourne
  5. College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, Adelaide
  6. Speech Pathology, Graduate School of Health, Faculty of Health, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney
  7. La Trobe University, Melbourne
  8. The University of Melbourne, Parkville

Background and aim: The Young Stroke Service (YSS) is a five-year project established to improve access to care and address unmet needs of stroke survivors aged 18 to 55 in Victoria and South Australia. The aim of this presentation is to describe demographics and unmet needs of YSS registrants, and provide an update on project achievements at three-years.     

Methods: We describe registrants’ demographic data in Victoria and South Australia, and self-reported, prioritised unmet needs identified from the Young Stroke Unmet Needs Survey. We provide project updates relating to clinical service development, evaluation and research, and digital development workstreams. 

Results: 158 Victorians (median age 43 (IQR 36-48), 83 (53%) female, 5.8 months poststroke (IQR 2.6-12.8)), and 152 South Australians (age 46 (IQR 38-51), 67 (44%) female, 4.0 months poststroke (IQR 2.1-9.3)) have joined YSS. In both states, the most prioritised unmet needs were fatigue, work or study, and thinking or memory.  

YSS registrants receive bespoke services where community services are unavailable. Across two service models, YSS provides neuropsychology assessment and intervention, neurology, vocational rehabilitation, driving assessment, NDIS consultation.  South Australia’s model also includes rehabilitation medicine, nursing and allied health.  

Other YSS achievements are the development of a communication accessibility and inclusion guideline, establishment of a longitudinal dataset and research volunteer registry. Health service evaluations and digital platform development are ongoing. 

Conclusion: At three-years, the YSS has supported over 300 people, many with unmet needs related to work and cognition. Future evaluations will compare service models to inform YSS sustainability.