Clarion Hospital Collaborates With Allegheny Health Network to Bring Advanced
Telestroke Services To Clarion
Clarion Hospital is pleased to announce that as of Wednesday, July 10th,
Telestroke Services went live and are now available to patients at Clarion
Hospital. Utilizing the latest telemedicine technology, Clarion Hospital
can now offer the services of real time, audiovisual consultation with
a stroke neurologist from the Allegheny Health Network (AHN) Neuroscience
Institute in treating patients with stroke symptoms.
Through a USDA federally funded matching grant, Clarion Hospital was able
to acquire the telemedicine video conferencing carts at the hospital.
This equipment allows for the Clarion Hospital Physicians to connect directly
with AHN neurologists to assist in evaluating the patient right here in
our hospital and together determine the best course of treatment.
When a patient presents to our Emergency Department with stroke symptoms,
time is of the essence. “Our staff has been collaborating with Allegheny
Health Network to put protocols in place to insure rapid evaluation, intervention,
and quality stroke care for patients in our community,” said Leslie
Walters, Chief Nursing Officer. “This intervention may now include
a video conference with a consulting neurologist from Allegheny Health
Network, a service available 24/7.”
The telemedicine equipment is moved to the foot of the patient bed. Once
it is established that a video consultation is in order, the neurologist
logs into the telestroke system and can interact with the patient, their
family and the Clarion Hospital Physician. The neurologist discusses the
assessment findings and the treatment options with the family during the
video consultation. Once options are discussed the plan of treatment is
put into place, which may include Alteplase, a clot busting drug that
can be administered right here at Clarion Hospital. There are two Telemedicine
Carts available to our physicians to use, one is located in our Emergency
Department and the second is located in our ICU to provide Telestroke
Services to patients that are already hospitalized.
“This is another way we are utilizing technology to enhance access
to critical health care services close to home in Clarion and the surrounding
communities. This is also a key step toward our pursuit of becoming a
certified, Primary Stroke Center,” said Steven Davis, CEO Clarion
Hospital. “There are over 200 strokes per year in our service area,”
said Davis “and we see our role as educating the public to recognize
early signs and symptoms and to know they can receive timely, definitive
and life/brain saving care close to home.”
AHN was recently recognized for its leading stroke care by the American
Stroke Association and it’s Get with the Guidelines-Stroke initiative.
The achievement awards were given to multiple AHN hospitals demonstrating
the exceptional expertise and capabilities of the network’s multi-disciplinary
stroke program.
“Clarion Hospital and Allegheny Health Network have a shared mission
of providing patients with high quality health care services in the communities
where they live and we are excited to help advance the hospital’s
ability to care for stroke patients through the innovation of telemedicine,”
said Dr. Ashis Tayal, MD, Medical Director of the Comprehensive Stroke
Center at AGH and Co-Director of the AHN Cerebrovascular Center. “We
look forward to the positive impact our collaboration will have on the
people of Clarion County.”
So what exactly is a stroke? A stroke is a disease that affects the arteries
leading to and within the brain. A stroke occurs when a blood vessel that
caries oxygen and nutrients to the brain is either blocked by a clot or
ruptures. When that happens, part of the brain cannot get the blood and
oxygen it needs and brain cells die.
Strokes can be ischemic (a blockage of the artery) or hemorrhagic (when
the artery bursts or a bleed). Sometimes a TIA (transient ischemic attack)
occurs, this is also known as a mini-stroke that produces stroke-like
symptoms. If you are having any symptoms of a stroke call 9-1-1 immediately,
the sooner a stroke victim gets to the hospital, the sooner they will
get the lifesaving treatment that they need. Stroke survivors have the
best outcomes when they receive treatment in 4.5 hours or less.
How To Spot A Stroke
The acronym FAST is used in spotting stroke symptoms.
F – Face Drooping
Does one side of the face droop or is it numb? Ask the person to smile.
A – Arm Weakness
Is one arm weak or numb? Ask the person to raise both arms. Does one arm
drift downward?
S– Speech Difficulty
Is Speech slurred, are they unable to speak or are they hard to understand?
Ask the person to repeat a simple sentence, like “the sky is blue.”
Is the sentence repeated correctly?
T- Time To Call 911
If the person shows any of these symptoms, even if the symptoms go away,
call 9-1-1 and get them to the hospital immediately. Be sure to mark the
time of the call so you will know when the first symptoms appeared. This
is important information you will need to know when you get to the hospital.
