'I couldn't form the words': 23-year-old Ont. woman highlights need for rural health care after stroke

Robyn Penniall knows first-hand the importance of health care in rural Canadian communities.

Just two weeks ago, the 23-year-old had a stroke and required immediate care.

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"It was terrifying," she said, recounting the stroke. "I knew what I wanted to say, but I couldn't form the words. I was stuttering, there was no voice coming out."

"She just kept saying, 'Mom,'" Aussa Penniall, Robyn's mother, said.

"And I said, 'Have you fallen? Have you had an accident?' And then she just said 'Mom' again, and I just said, 'Do you want me to call an ambulance?'"

Robyn lives two hours north of Toronto in the cottage country of Muskoka. There is only one hospital in the area, Bracebridge hospital, with the second closest being in Huntsville.

Robyn Penniall after suffering a stroke. (Photo provided by Aussa Penniall)

Both are set to be redeveloped as part of a Muskoka Algonquin Healthcare (MAHC) redevelopment plan. The plan is unpopular with residents and doctors say that the redevelopment could negatively impact patient care for years.

Called "Care Close to Home V2," the model is set to give Bracebridge 60 acute care beds and another 97 for Huntsville.

In an open letter, Muskoka doctors said that the redevelopment model "has reduced inpatient capacity at South Muskoka by almost 70 per cent."

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"Rather than expanding, our hospital is contracting," the letter says.

In response to the public outcry and concerns from doctors, Muskoka Algonquin Healthcare communications director Bobbie Clark says the organization is listening "and we continue to listen."

Robyn Penniall. (Photo provided by Aussa Penniall)

While the number of acute hospital beds in Bracebridge will decline, Clark adds that overall, there will be an increase in capacity at both hospitals following redevelopment to help deal with "critical mass."

"Health care is changing and the way that we need to respond to those needs is changing," Clark said.

In an interview with CTV News last week, Bracebridge Coun. Tatiana Sutherland called the situation upsetting and ultimately unwanted.

"We find ourselves in a situation where trust has been lost, where communities are upset, where the entire medical community of South Muskoka seems to be begging us to intervene," she said.

While Robyn was able to fully recover from her stroke, she realizes the importance of having strong rural health care.

"Who knows, I really don't know what could have happened to me," she said.

Asked what it was like to return home after the surgery, Robyn gave an emotional response, saying, "To be able to come home so fast and be with my loved ones, and speak to them, it means the world to me that I'm still here and I'm OK."