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News

Home » About Us » News

Minister “Needs To Get Stroke Care Right Now”

Friday 28 March 2008

A leading medical charity has given the Health Minister, Michael McGimpsey, a list of recommendations it believes is necessary if a new Stroke Strategy for Northern Ireland is to be a success.

A leading medical charity has given the Health Minister, Michael McGimpsey, a list of recommendations it believes is necessary if a new Stroke Strategy for Northern Ireland is to be a success.

Public consultation on the Minister's proposals ends today, but NI Chest, Heart and Stroke believes the plan needs to be more specific in some of its objectives. It is calling for :

- Speedier diagnosis and fast admission to a dedicated Stroke Unit
- Round-the-clock access to MRI and CT scans
- Timely provision of clot-busting drugs for those who need them
- More comprehensive support for the stroke family
- Better psychological support for the stroke survivor

The charity also wants the Minister to be more ambitious in some of the targets he has set. One of his proposals aims for four out of five stroke survivors to spend at least 50% of their time in hospital in a stroke unit by 2010. NICHS believes every stroke patient should spend at least 75% of his or her hospital stay in a stroke unit by 2011, rising to 95% of hospital stay by 2012.

The charity's Chief Executive, Andrew Dougal, has been to Stormont to pass on more than 250 letters from members of the public agreeing with the NICHS recommendations.

He said: "The Minister has the best opportunity in more than a generation to improve care for stroke survivors and it's vitally important that we now get it right.

"While we don't disagree with any of the recommendations, we believe that they should be more specific, particularly when it comes to ensuring that staff are trained to diagnose stroke at the earliest possible opportunity. Lost time amounts to lost recovery, and the overriding aim should be to do everything possible to ensure the most complete recovery possible under the circumstances.

"Stroke is the single biggest cause of disability in Northern Ireland, and in order to reduce that toll will require much greater urgency of treatment.

"We also believe that the psychological anguish caused by the condition - for both patient and carer - needs to be addressed much more effectively than it is at present."

Ends