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12 Neurology trainee Dr Alan Barber is awarded the VJ Chapman Fellowship to study for a PhD in stroke research at the Royal Melbourne Hospital. Alan is appointed as Neurologist and Director, Auckland City Hospital Stroke Service. New Zealand starts to take part in clinical trials for clot busting drugs (thrombolysis). Now a Professor at the University of Auckland, Alan is appointed as The Neurological Foundation Chair in Clinical Neurology and establishes the Neurology Research Unit. Alan is appointed as Deputy Director of the newly established Centre for Brain Research at the University of Auckland. National Stroke Reperfusion Therapy Registry launched. NZ starts to take part in clinical trials for a revolutionary treatment called clot retrieval (thrombectomy) that physically removes large clots. 1997 2001 2008 2009 2015 The envy of the world: Ten years of clot retrieval & the difference it’s making Stroke affects at least 9,000 Kiwis every year. It’s the major cause of long-term adult disability and third major cause of death after heart disease and all cancers combined. The stakes are high – which is why the Neurological Foundation has invested millions of dollars in research over five decades. One of themajor success stories is clot retrieval.Ten years ago, NewZealandwas one of thefirst places in theworld to roll out this treatment topatients. Now, 2,500patients fromacross the upper North Island – 30%of thoseflown in by helicopter – have been treatedwith stroke clot retrieval.This has resulted in an extra 1,000peoplewho arebetter than theywould havebeenwithout this treatment, and400who’ve avoidedexpensive hospital-level care. One in five have returned home as healthy as they were before the stroke. Clot retrieval is also carried out atWellington and Christchurch hospitals, meaning Kiwis across NZ can access the treatment. Professor Alan Barber, the Neurological Foundation Chair in Clinical Neurology (NFCCN), has been instrumental in transforming stroke treatment in NewZealand, and globally. He has been on multiple national and international committees, including the Global Stroke Quality and Guidelines Advisory Committee. In total, the Foundation has given $7M towards the NFCCN team, and awarded another $1.7M in research grants to projects that Alan and his team have been involved in.