In May 2015, Gary, a 42 year old professional golfer, had a fall from his bike. He had no obvious injuries except for some shoulder pain the following day. A few days later, whilst in the pub with friends, Gary collapsed. He suffered a severe stroke, paralysing his left side. In hospital he underwent a decompressive craniectomy (removal of part of the skull to allow room for the swelling of the injured brain). Three months later Gary was transferred to Chapel Allerton Hospital for rehabilitation, and at this time he was dependent on a hoist for all transfers and needed assistance for all personal care tasks and activities of daily living. In November 2015 Gary had further surgery, a cranioplasty, to replace the skull which had had to be removed. By Christmas of 2015 Gary was still requiring the use of the hoist for transfers and used a wheelchair for all mobility. At the end of February 2016 Gary was admitted to Daniel Yorath House (DYH) in Leeds, where Charlotte Bamber was providing physiotherapy cover, to continue his rehabilitation.

When Charlotte first assessed Gary he presented with global left sided weakness, left foot drop, altered sensation, no active upper limb function and was only able to take a few steps to transfer from bed to chair using a walking stick, but was unable to walk even as far as the bathroom without support. He reported his transfers to be slow and effortful, and needed a wheelchair for all other mobility. He was unable to ascend or descend stairs. His confidence when walking was reduced due to fear of falling, the risk of which was significantly increased by his left foot drop. He also had shoulder pain on movement of his left arm and also due to poor positioning. Gary told Charlotte his goals included improving his walking ability and being able to use his left arm.