International accolade for Moruya Hospital's fight against stroke
The stroke unit at Moruya Hospital has been recognised with a prestigious World Stroke Organization Angels Gold Status Award for meeting the highest standards in stroke treatment and care.
The Angels initiative, a partnership between the World Stroke Organization, European Stroke Organisation and Boehringer Ingelheim, aims to optimise the standard of treatment in stroke centres worldwide and improve patient outcomes by setting global benchmarks for best practice stroke care.
Moruya Hospital's Emergency Department Nurse Unit Manager, Rachael Wall, said achieving WSO Gold Status was a great honour and testament to a team effort to enhance stroke care in the local area.
“Stroke is a time-critical medical emergency where blood supply to the brain is interrupted or reduced,” Rachael said. “With each minute that goes by more brain cells can be lost and the risk of disability and death increases.
“Acting swiftly on the signs of stroke and implementing best practice care requires coordination between ambulance, emergency department, radiology and stroke unit staff,” Rachael said.
Training, protocols and the performance of the hospital’s stroke unit were assessed as part of the Angels Initiative, which includes a target of restoring blood-flow to the brain to more than half of eligible patients within 60 minutes of their hospital arrival.
"Ensuring appropriate patients receive clot busting therapy within 60 minutes of arriving at the hospital door is the gold standard and means that more people will survive and live well after stroke," Rachael said.
To achieve WSO Gold status a hospital must demonstrate a range of outcomes, including optimum time to treatment, coordinated care, appropriate scans and screening, and ensuring patients are discharged from hospital on medications to minimise the risk of further stroke.
As a NSW Telestroke Service site, Moruya Hospital has 24/7 access to lifesaving stroke diagnosis and treatment, by connecting local doctors to specialist stroke physicians via video consultation in the emergency department.
Stroke is an emergency. If you think you are having a stroke, call 000. Learn the F.A.S.T. signs of stroke