Action on stoke care

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Action on stoke care

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Stroke is the third most common cause of death in the UK. During 2009/10, almost 2,000 people in Hampshire were admitted as an emergency to hospital having been diagnosed as having had a stroke and of those 418 died. Stroke can happen to anyone, young or old, at any time. In fact, 25% of people who have a stroke are under retirement age.

NHS Hampshire is committed to improving stroke care across the county and we are working with doctors and other staff in the hospitals, community services, GPs, local councils and The Stroke Association to see what needs to be done locally to deliver better services. The views of local people with stroke and their carers have been essential as we progress with this work.

In particular, we have been looking at ways of providing specialist rehabilitation after someone has a stroke and we are aiming to develop services in patient’s homes or at a hospital closer to home, depending on their needs, to ensure they recover as quickly and as well as possible.

Certain patients can now also benefit from a clot-busting drug treatment called thrombolysis and this service is now being made available across Hampshire hospitals within special stroke units. This can have a dramatic effect on the outcome of a stroke, with some patients making a complete recovery. However, it does depend upon those around the patient knowing the signs of a stroke, as the best results are achieved within three hours of an attack happening. The box below tells you what to look for if you think someone might have had a stroke.

For those at risk of stroke and those who experience a mini-stroke, or TIA (transient ischaemic attack), there are also new outpatient services to ensure that they can be seen quickly by a specialist stroke team. In the near future this service will be available seven days a week.

For more information on strokes, how to prevent them and how to spot the signs visit: www.nhs.uk/pathways/stroke

Remember to act FAST to recognise the symptoms of stroke:

F - Facial weakness – can the person smile? Has their mouth or eye drooped?

A - Arm weakness - can the person raise both arms?

S - Speech problems - can the person speak clearly and understand what you say?

T - Time to call 999 - if the person shows any one of these signs call an ambulance