The stroke unit ward 110 situated on the 11th floor at Hull Royal Infirmary was officially opened by Alan Johnson MP when he was invited to do so by Mr Ian Blakey Chairman of the Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust.
Campaigners who tirelessly fought for a new stroke unit in Hull have received top recognition for their hard work.
Officially opening Hull Royal Infirmary's dedicated stroke ward, Hull West and Hessle MP Alan Johnson praised the lobbying group which campaigned for an improvement in the care for stroke patients in East Yorkshire.
Unveiling a plaque at the specialist 24 bed unit,based in ward 110 at the hospital on Anlaby Road, Mr Johnson described members of Strokewatch, formerly known as the OK Stroke Club and the Hull and East Riding Stroke Survivors' Forum, as the best lobbying group he had ever met.
He said: "It was almost two years ago when I first met Brian Archibald and Dilys Page, and other members of the Strokewatch group who asked me to present a petition to parliament.
"This was the first time I had ever presented a petition to Parliament and that petition was calling for a stroke unit to be set up at Hull Royal Infirmary.
And being here to see the results of that petition makes me highly delighted and immensely proud to be part of it."
The new unit will improve services for stroke patients by knitting a once fragmented service together.
Strokes, which occur when the blood supply to the brain is disrupted, are the third biggest killer in the UK, with more than 100,000 people suffering their first stroke every year.
In any 12-month period,about 1,100 people in East Yorkshire suffer a stroke.
Mr Archibald,chairman of Strokewatch, said the opening was a culmination of all the hard work by campaigners, hospital trust and the health authority.
And he added: "I am looking forward to the opening of the whole stroke service because the unit is just one part of a huge, more in-depth service."
Dr Abdul Hamid from the unit, added: "This is the best day of my life. "Research has shown that patients treated in a dedicated stroke unit show a 19 per cent reduction in mortality compared to those treated in a general ward. "This is because the service is more organised and the whole team can work together in one place."