An Advanced Stroke Care Centre is a specialized medical facility designed to deliver comprehensive, time-sensitive, and highly effective care for stroke patients. It brings together multiple specialized services that work in close coordination to ensure rapid diagnosis, timely treatment, and dedicated rehabilitation.
The following five key components form the backbone of efficient stroke care:
- Rapid response EMS
Effective stroke management begins even before the patient reaches the hospital.
- Dedicated team: Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel are specially trained to recognize stroke symptoms using the FAST acronym — Face drooping, Arm weakness, Speech difficulty, Time to call for help.
- 24/7 availability: A round-the-clock multidisciplinary team including neurologists, neuro-radiologists, neurosurgeons, and specialized nurses ensures immediate care at any hour.
- Goal: To minimize the “door-to-needle” or “door-to-groin” time — the crucial interval between hospital arrival and the start of treatment — thereby reducing brain damage and improving survival rates.
- Rapid diagnosis
Accurate and prompt imaging is critical to determine the type of stroke and the appropriate treatment.
- CT Scan (Computed Tomography): Typically the first-line imaging tool, CT scans quickly differentiate between ischemic and hemorrhagic strokes, an essential step since treatment differs drastically between the two.
- MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging): Provides a detailed assessment of brain tissue, helping identify the extent of injury and the potentially salvageable brain region (penumbra).
- Goal: To confirm stroke type, location, and severity, and guide immediate treatment decisions.
- Time-sensitive treatments for Ischemic stroke
Restoring blood flow to the brain is the primary objective in acute ischemic stroke care.
- Clot-busting medication (Thrombolysis): Intravenous administration of a drug such as alteplase (tPA) helps dissolve clots obstructing blood flow. This treatment is most effective when given within 4.5 hours of symptom onset.
- Endovascular procedures (Mechanical Thrombectomy): In selected patients with large vessel occlusions, a catheter-based procedure removes the clot directly. This can be beneficial even up to 24 hours after stroke onset in specific cases identified through advanced imaging.
- Goal: To rapidly restore blood circulation, limit brain injury, and enhance recovery outcomes.
- Stroke & Neuro Intervention Unit (SNU)
Following acute treatment, patients are shifted to a specialized unit for close neurological and medical monitoring.
- Continuous monitoring: Vital signs and neurological functions are observed continuously to detect early signs of complications.
- Blood pressure & oxygen management: Maintaining optimal blood pressure and oxygen levels is critical to prevent secondary damage or re-bleeding.
- Comorbidity management: Conditions such as diabetes, atrial fibrillation, and infections are closely managed to prevent recurrence or deterioration.
- Goal: To stabilize the patient, prevent complications, and determine underlying causes for long-term prevention strategies.
- Advanced neuro rehabilitation
Early and structured rehabilitation plays a vital role in helping stroke survivors regain independence and quality of life.
- Multidisciplinary approach: Rehabilitation is led by a team including physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech-language pathologists, and rehabilitation physicians.
- Physical recovery: Focuses on improving strength, coordination, balance, and mobility.
- Functional independence: Occupational therapy helps patients relearn daily activities such as dressing, bathing, and eating.
- Speech and swallowing therapy: Addresses communication and swallowing difficulties often caused by stroke.
- Goal: To promote neuroplasticity — the brain’s ability to reorganize itself — enabling patients to recover lost functions and return to daily life as independently as possible.