Implementing a Stroke Program Using Telemedicine

Stroke is the fourth leading cause of death and the leading cause of disability in the United States, affecting more than 750,000 people annually. Every 40 seconds someone experiences a stroke, and every 4 minutes a person dies from a stroke. In 1999 the American Heart Association (AHA), American Stroke Association (ASA), and the Brain Attack Coalition developed evidence-based guidelines for acute stroke care. These guidelines support the use of the antithrombotic drug tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) as a beneficial treatment for patients with acute stroke symptoms that meet specific guidelines. In the same year, the Food and Drug Administration approved the use of tPA in the treatment of persons with acute embolic stroke. In 2004 the Joint Commission developed a disease-specific certification based on the AHA/ASA and Brain Attack Coalition guidelines. Although use of tPA was approved 12 years ago and the drug has been available to patients since then, the rate of use of tPA to treat acute stroke in qualified candidates across the United States is an astonishingly low 3% to 6%. Efforts to improve the recognition of acute stroke and treat candidates who meet the criteria for tPA largely have been ineffective because many states have few or no facilities that provide acute stroke treatment.
Source: Journal of Emergency Nursing: JEN - Category: Nursing Authors: Tags: Clinical Source Type: research