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Stroke is the leading cause of disability in the
United States. However, a stroke is also up to 80 percent
preventable if you know what to look for, says April Louey-Blood,
RN, BSN, CCRN, Nursing Director of the Stroke Unit at Gulf
Coast Medical Center. There is a three-hour window of
opportunity to treat a stroke by preventing a blood clot
from traveling to the brain and causing damage.
Unfortunately, not a lot of people can recognize the signs
of a stroke, which include weakness in parts of the body,
slurred speech, difficulty walking or feelings |
| of being disoriented. “These signs of a
stroke often mimic signs of aging, so people don’t always
recognize them,” April says. |
That is why the Stroke Unit—which went from eight beds at Southwest
Florida Regional Medical Center to 12 at GCMC— will expand its
outreach education, too, she says.
At SWFRMC, the Stroke Unit team regularly gave talks at area
churches, health fairs and colleges, as well as to new nurses. “We
have a very elderly population here, so we need a lot of education
in the community,” she says. “But everyone should be educated
because anyone can have a stroke if the right components are in
place.”
The Stroke Unit is a Certified Primary Stroke Center and has earned
the Gold Seal of Approval from The Joint Commission, a
not-for-profit organization that accredits more than 15,000
hospitals each year. “They don’t just hand those certifications out
to anybody,” April says with a chuckle. “You have to meet a very
specific list of criteria
that shows you are at the top of your game.”
Lee Memorial Health System has the potential to become a Certified
Comprehensive Stroke Center, which is the highest level that can be
attained by The Joint Commission for a nonteaching
hospital, says Holly Muller, RN, BSN, MHA, CRRN, System Director,
Nursing Services for GCMC.
In 2008, the Stroke Unit treated more than 460 patients, and the
program has grown each year since it was created in 2005. “We
are well-positioned to continue to provide high quality
neurological, neurosurgical and stroke-related services to the
community,
and we are capable of expanding to meet those needs,” Holly says.
To learn more about the Stroke Center at LMHS,
click here.
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