Mr Andy MacKellar

• Physiotherapist

Treatments

Biography: In 1978 my Grandma had a stroke. I was 17 at the time and of course knew nothing about stroke. Mum had been a nurse and between us, Mum and my three older brothers, we tried to take care of her as best we could. It must have been a big stroke; she couldn’t sit on her own, never mind stand. I think we managed for about two months, but after that she deteriorated and died soon after. She was 86, so perhaps in hindsight not a big surprise, though of course a shock. I just wanted to tell the story so that whoever reads this will know that here at SHIPS PHYSIO they will get a listening ear. At that point I’d already chosen my career and started college two years later, qualifying in 1983. I had always imagined going into sport physiotherapy: I was and still am a keen sports person. But in my first job in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, I met Maureen, who was the Senior in the Stroke Unit. She is one of the kindest people I ever met, and was so passionate and enthusiastic about her work. Most of the people I had worked with thus far had had little to say about the prospects for people with strokes. But Maureen sowed a seed in me and it has become my life's work. If you read this Maureen, thank you, from the bottom of my heart. Of course I completed my rotations as a junior in the hospital, but had my first real chance to specialise in 1987. Since then I have worked continuously in the field of rehabilitation for adults with neurological and post neuro-surgical problems.