Conference

Advancing Stroke Care Together

Thursday 17th September 2026

Stirling Court Hotel,

University of Stirling,

Stirling

Programme Focus

With a focus on inequalities in stroke care and how we address these in practice, the programme will bring together clinical, research and lived experience perspectives across the day.

The conference programme will focus on addressing inequalities across the stroke pathway, with spotlight sessions on childhood stroke, lived experience, and evidence-informed practice. It will explore what Realistic Medicine and shifting the balance of care mean for nurses and allied health professionals, and highlight the leadership role of stroke nursing and AHPs in advancing stroke care together. The programme will feature keynote talks, practical case-study-focused discussions, and a fast-paced, interactive improvement and research showcase highlighting innovation from across stroke services.

Join us for a day of inspirational and energising discussion, learning and shared practice.

The conference is intended for anyone involved in stroke care, rehabilitation and long-term support, including: Nurses, Allied Health Professionals, Psychologists, Doctors, Researchers, Educators and Students, as well as representatives from the Third Sector.

Confirmed speakers include:

Dr Matt Lambert, National Clinical Lead for Stroke and Stroke Specialty Advisor to the CMO,
Prof. Mary-Joan McLeod, Clinical Pharmacologist and Honorary Consultant in Stroke, NHS Grampian, Scottish Stroke Improvement Programme Lead
Jo Stevens, Stroke Specialist Nurse/ACP, Bury Community Stroke Team
Prof. Lorna Paul, Allied Health Science, Glasgow Caledonian University. Principal investigator for PRACTISE trial.
Dr Sarah Keir, Consultant in Stroke Medicine and Medicine for the Elderly, NHS Lothian.
Mrs Nancy McStravick, Parent Representative for Childhood Stroke, Stroke Association.

and more TBC soon!

Call for Abstracts

Abstract submission deadline: 17th of July 2026

Would you like to present a short talk or a poster at this conference?

We welcome abstracts in the following categories:

1. Research*

2. Clinical practice innovation

3. Clinical guideline/ policy development

4. Audit or service evaluation*

5. Education innovation

6. Knowledge exchange

We also welcome posters on “Work in Progress” for projects that are still underway.

* If you are looking for information about the differences between research, audit and service evaluation, you can find out here: https://www.hra-decisiontools.org.uk/research/docs/definingresearchtable_oct2017-1.pdf

Please see below for the guidance for the abstract submissions and contact details.

Registration now OPEN!!

The Scottish Stroke Allied Health Professions Forum (SSAHPF) and Scottish Stroke Nurses Forum (SSNF) are delighted to announce that registrations are now open for our joint conference.

Please scan the QR code/click on the link to complete the registration form

Registration form SSNF/SSAHPF conference 2026

Please note payment will be required at the time of booking.

Link to payment site – Tickets: SSNF & SSAHPF Conference 2026 | Stirling Management Centre Stirling Thu 17 September 2026

Registration Fees

Delegate: £77.25 including booking fee

Students: £33.25 including booking fee

For further enquiries, please contact: Gillian Capriotti or Zara Tumblety

([email protected], [email protected])

For booking enquiries, please contact: Katrina McCormick

([email protected])

For further information, please visit:

Scottish Stroke Nurse Forum

Scottish Stroke Allied Health Professionals Forum

Call for Abstracts

Abstract submission deadline: 17th of July 2026

Guidance for abstract submission – oral and poster:

· Word limit for the abstract (Background to and including Conclusion) is 300 words. The word count does not include: abstract title, category, author names or affiliations.

Format for the abstract:

· Title: if your poster represents Work in Progress, please add “WIP” to the title.
· Category: please state one category, selected from the list of categories above.
· Name(s) of the author(s).
· Institutional affiliation of the author(s). In case of multiple authorship, the first named author is the person presenting the oral/ poster.
· Background: a brief introduction and rationale (why the project was undertaken).
· Method: an outline of the method (how the project was done).
· Results: a summary of the main results (what was found). If you are presenting WIP, you may not yet have any Results, which is acceptable .
· Discussion: an interpretation of the findings and indication of implications, e.g. for practice, research or education. If you are presenting WIP, you may not yet have a Discussion, which is acceptable.
· Conclusion. If you are presenting WIP, please state the next step(s) in your project.

Please indicate whether you would consider presenting as an oral/ poster presentation. We will organise an informal poster tour to give you an opportunity to share your work with other delegates. This will involve a summary and Q&A of around 5 minutes.

· [References are not normally required or expected but if included, no more than two are acceptable.]

· Please save your abstract as a Word document.

· The conference committee will review abstracts anonymously and independently, and aim to ensure that the programme reflects both the conference theme and the wide-ranging interests of the audience.

· We will take your preferred presentation format (i.e. an oral/ poster) into account and decide which format would best suit the conference programme. We will contact you about this, with further guidance on how to present.

Abstract submission deadline: 17th of July 2026

Submitting your abstract:

Please attach your abstract to an email and send this to: [email protected] stating “Stroke conference abstract” in the title of your email.

If you have any questions please feel free to get in touch with: Chris Taylor

We look forward to receiving your abstract!