Stroke Services

Top 100 Hospital Recognition
Regional Medical Center has been recognized by Solucient for excellence in the provision of stroke care to patients and is a recipient of the 100 Top Stroke Hospitals Award. The hospital's recognition for clinical excellence and efficient delivery of care was published in Modern Healthcare magazine, the leading health-care industry publication. 100 Top Hospitals: Stroke Benchmarks for Success, conducted for the first time in 2000 by Solucient, will be an annual study that identifies U.S. hospitals that provide the greatest benefit in delivering stroke care.

"We are very excited about our 100 Top Hospital recognition," said Josh Putter, Executive Director at Regional. "This, along with our Top 100 cardiovascular award, reaffirms what the physicians and staff at Regional accomplish every day - that is providing the highest quality health care in County. The community should also be excited to have a health-care provider that is nationally recognized for excellence in patient care. Although we are pleased with this award, our greatest satisfaction comes from caring for our patients. We feel the best is still to come."

The Solucient study is a purely objective study, based on objective, quantitative data that are consistent and complete across the United States. This methodology ensures that the focus is on statistical rather than anecdotal evidence of top performance. The measures for the 2000 study stress quality of care, efficiency of operations, and sustainability of overall performance.

This year's ranking is based on the following six measures of clinical quality practices, operations and financial management:

Risk-adjusted patient mortality index
Risk-adjusted patient complications index
Count of patients receiving stroke services
Severity-adjusted average length of stay at the hospital
Wage- and severity-adjusted average cost per patient
Percentage of patients who came from and were discharged to home or home health agency.

"Our study shows clearly that the winners of the 100 Top Hospitals Stroke award are providing stroke care with significantly fewer complications and significantly fewer deaths than other hospitals," said Jean Chenoweth, senior vice president, Solucient. "For consumers, our study also provides clear guidance: stroke services, such as those in 100 Top Stroke Hospitals that treat high numbers of stroke patients, tend to produce better results than programs that treat small numbers of patients and/or are trying to grow at a very fast pace."

Copies of the 2000 study, 100 Top Hospitals: Stroke Benchmarks for Success, can be purchased from Solucient Customer Service at 205-752-5050.

A summary version of the study can be found on Solucient's 100 Top Hospitals Web site (http://www.100tophospitals.com).

What is a Stroke?
A stroke is an injury to the brain that occurs when the blood supply to that area is interrupted. This leads to death of brain tissue. There are different kinds of strokes, the most common of which are:

Thrombotic stroke
A stroke caused by a blood clot blocking one of the arteries that supplies blood to the brain.
Embolic stroke- a stroke caused by a blood clot from another part of your body (for example, the heart) breaks loose and travels to the brain blocking flow to a blood vessel.
Hemorrhagic stroke
A stroke caused by breaking of a blood vessel with bleeding into and around the brain.

How Does Stroke Affect a Person?
The brain is responsible for controlling our thoughts, our mind and our body's action in many areas. The most common symptoms of a stroke include:

Weakness or numbness of the face, arm or leg
Difficulty in speaking or understanding speech
Dizziness
Sudden blurred or decreased vision in one or both eyes
Loss of balance

What Are the Risk Factors for Stroke?
Certain factors increase an individual's risk for stroke including:

Age over 55
High blood pressure
Diabetes
Smoking
Heart Disease
Obesity
Previous stroke
Excessive alcohol consumption
Family history
Race - increased occurrence in African Americans

The Stroke Team
Our multi-disciplinary stroke team works together to provide our stroke patients with the most advanced techniques, newest medications and highest level of bedside care. From arrival though our ER doors to discharge, our skilled clinical staff and a specialized team of physicians administer care and monitor progress, every step of the way.

Our multi-disciplinary stroke team includes:

Emergency room physicians
Nurses
Radiologists
Neurologists
Neurosurgeons
Vascular surgeons
Rehabilitation staff
Dietitians
Social workers