Advanced Stroke Service Now in Place at Emerson Hospital - DPH Designates Primary Stroke Service Hospitals to Improve Stroke Care
02.17.05
Concord, MA - Latest therapies to treat stroke at Emerson Hospital's Emergency Department have earned the hospital a distinction from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. Emerson now becomes one of the hospitals across the state designated as a Primary Stroke Service Hospital to administer life-saving medical techniques. The program provides care for stroke victims by focusing on rapid assessment and evaluation for possible treatment by a drug called Tissue Plasminogen Activator.
For nearly a decade this drug has been available, but fewer than 3 percent of stroke patients have benefited. Tissue Plasminogen Activator (tPA) breaks up the clots in brain blood vessels that cause most strokes. Treating patients with tPA within a three-hour window increases the chance that a patient may survive their stroke and escape the debilitating injuries that make strokes the greatest cause of disability among adults.
"The time-sensitive nature of tPA (thrombolytic therapy) , the most effective treatment during stroke, requires that acute stroke patients be transported quickly to hospitals that are prepared to rapidly diagnose and treat their condition," comments Dr. Gert-Paul Walter, Director of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and Advanced Life Services (ALS), Emerson Hospital. "Our hospital provides easy access and rapid assessment to stoke patients and with our accreditation as a Primary Stroke Service ensures readiness for the communities we serve."
To be included as a Primary Stroke Service by MDPH, the hospital must assure that emergency diagnostic and therapeutic services are provided by a multidisciplinary team and available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to patients presenting with symptoms of acute stroke. The Northeast Affiliate Stroke Task Force for the American Stroke Association considers this a tremendous step forward in making high-quality acute stroke care available to area citizens.
The Primary Stroke Services program has been integrated into the regional Emergency Medical Service point of entry plan that directs ambulances transporting patients with acute stroke symptoms to hospitals designated primary stroke services. Emerson Hospital paramedics have received specialized training in recognizing signs and symptoms of stroke, and are integrated into the entire continuum of stroke care.
Stroke is the third leading cause of death and the leading cause of adult disability in the United States. In Massachusetts, in 2002, 17,799 people were hospitalized with stroke symptoms. Emerson Hospital is one of 33 Massachusetts hospitals who have received this accreditation. Only 88 hospitals in 28 states total have received accreditation, but hundreds more are seeking it.
Signs of stroke include:
- Sudden numbness or weakness of the face, arm or leg, especially on one side of the body
- Sudden confusion, trouble speaking or understanding
- Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes
- Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination
- Sudden, severe headache with no known cause
If someone is experiencing any of these symptoms, this should be recognized as an emergency and contact 911 should be contacted to take the patient to a Primary Stroke Services Hospital.
Emerson Hospital, a 177-bed acute care medical center located in Concord, Massachusetts, is well known for its medical and surgical specialists, outstanding nursing care and patient-centered services. The hospital provides advanced medical service to more than 300,000 individuals in a 25 town region.
