A MAN who suffered from a stroke and meningitis hasn't let Alzheimer's slow his stride, thanks to new technology and an Andover charity. 

Known as the 'miracle man', former director Hugo, 78, from Hampshire defied medics' warning he wouldn't walk again after waking up from his month-long coma after suffering a haemorrhagic stroke, followed by bacterial meningitis. 

In 2021, after noticing some changes in Hugo's behaviour, his wife Louisa organised a brain scan which sadly confirmed that Hugo had a mixture of dementia, including Alzheimer’s and vascular dementia.

Having learned to walk again following his stroke, he and Louise looked for support which would allow Hugo to keep active without Louise worrying if he has fallen or become lost.

Luckily, with the help of a support worker at an Andover hospital, they were given an Oysta Pearl, which can be used both inside outside of the home and funded by Hampshire County Council. The lanyard device features a button, that if Hugo ever falls over by pressing that button both Louisa and support would be notified. 

Louisa said: “Hugo is not prone to falling at this stage, but clearly as the disease develops that could change quite radically, and that is where I think the Oysta device will come into its own.

"Right now, he can play golf with his friends or take a walk around the village and chat to neighbours and I don’t have to worry because this device gives me peace of mind and if he is a little longer than normal, I can check to see if he’s on his way home after stopping to chat to a friend, or if he’s lost.”

Both Louise and Hugo were given specialist advice from a mental health Nurse who put them in touch with the charity Andover Mind. They were able to offer advice on what support is available including technology and service upgrades they were entitled to.

Laura Mouzouris-Lodge, Head of Countywide Operations and Safeguarding Lead at Andover Mind explained that more than 850,000 people living with dementia in the UK and one in four of us will experience mental health problems at some point 

She added: “Our team of Dementia and Carer Support Advisors are incredibly passionate about this field of work, with a lot of them having lived experience so they know first-hand the challenges faced by those navigating a Dementia diagnosis, and the impact on their loved ones, many of whom don't recognise themselves as carers.

“These are tough things to face alone so you’ll want experienced and compassionate people in your corner. That’s where we come in.”

The Oysta Pearl is a mobile care device backed by a cloud-based platform called ‘IntelliCare’ and the scheme led by Hampshire County Council and the local police force found there was a 65% reduction in people reported missing to the police since patients with dementia were the device.