13 Feb 2009 04:00 AM
Major Shake Up Of London Stroke And Trauma Services Will Save Hundreds Of Lives
Five hundred lives a year will be saved through the creation of specialist stroke and trauma centres in London, according to a consultation launched this week. Expert clinical care and the latest technology would be concentrated in a few super - centres which would treat the most serious and life-threatening cases. And they would be linked to a network of A&E and stroke units across the capital dealing with less serious cases, rehabilitation and continued treatment .
The consultation, which is on part of Lord Darzi's ten year vision for the capital 'Healthcare for London', will look at the location and coverage of potential sites for eight specialist stroke and four major trauma centres.
Stroke is the second biggest killer in London and the most common cause of disability - around 11,500 Londoners suffer a stroke each year, about one person every hour.
The consultation calls for an extra £23m a year to be invested in delivering improved stroke care. The new stroke services would start to be delivered from early 2010.
Dr Chris Streather, Healthcare for London clinical stroke lead, said: 'Londoners deserve better access to life-saving treatment if they suffer a stroke. Clinical excellence in essential, but time is of the essence too. Many patients are treated in hospitals close to home, but the quality of clinical care they receive can be poor.'
Delivering this high quality care requires specialist multidisciplinary teams and high quality equipment available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
However, in 2006, out of 30 hospitals in London providing stroke services, only three treated over 90 per cent of stroke patients in a dedicated unit.
The best stroke care means rapid access to a CT scan to determine the cause of stroke, immediate treatment with clot-busting drugs, if appropriate, and physiotherapy within a few days of the stroke.
Thrombolysis - the use of clot-busting drugs - needs to occur within three hours of the onset of a stroke to be effective, and a CT scan is required before thrombolysis can occur. In 2006, no London hospital provided 90 per cent of patients with a scan within 24 hours.
Major trauma centres would deal only with the most serious cases, such as badly injured car crash victims and patients with life-threatening knife and gunshot wounds…
The consultation, which is on part of Lord Darzi's ten year vision for the capital 'Healthcare for London', will look at the location and coverage of potential sites for eight specialist stroke and four major trauma centres.
Stroke is the second biggest killer in London and the most common cause of disability - around 11,500 Londoners suffer a stroke each year, about one person every hour.
The consultation calls for an extra £23m a year to be invested in delivering improved stroke care. The new stroke services would start to be delivered from early 2010.
Dr Chris Streather, Healthcare for London clinical stroke lead, said: 'Londoners deserve better access to life-saving treatment if they suffer a stroke. Clinical excellence in essential, but time is of the essence too. Many patients are treated in hospitals close to home, but the quality of clinical care they receive can be poor.'
Delivering this high quality care requires specialist multidisciplinary teams and high quality equipment available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
However, in 2006, out of 30 hospitals in London providing stroke services, only three treated over 90 per cent of stroke patients in a dedicated unit.
The best stroke care means rapid access to a CT scan to determine the cause of stroke, immediate treatment with clot-busting drugs, if appropriate, and physiotherapy within a few days of the stroke.
Thrombolysis - the use of clot-busting drugs - needs to occur within three hours of the onset of a stroke to be effective, and a CT scan is required before thrombolysis can occur. In 2006, no London hospital provided 90 per cent of patients with a scan within 24 hours.
Major trauma centres would deal only with the most serious cases, such as badly injured car crash victims and patients with life-threatening knife and gunshot wounds…
