Victoria A World Leader In Stroke Survival

Photo: nhv.org.au

To mark National Stroke Week, Minister for Health, Jill Hennessy, today visited the Royal Melbourne Hospital’s ground breaking Endovascular Clot Retrieval (ECR) service.

ECR, where the clot formed during a stroke is “pulled” from the brain with a retrievable stent, has been shown to nearly double stroke recovery and survival outcomes by quickly restoring blood flow to the brain.

Studies show 70 per cent of patients recover from a stroke when treated with ECR, up from 39 per cent. It is now considered the world’s best practice for stroke treatment, and Victoria is leading the way.

The Royal Melbourne Hospital is Australia’s first comprehensive stroke service providing round-the-clock access to clot retrieval for stroke and is now a global leader in ECR stroke treatment and research.

So far in 2016, Royal Melbourne Hospital provided ECR to 139 people and across the state, more than 250 people are expected to access the lifesaving stroke treatment this year.

A state-wide ECR protocol was developed with the Victorian Stroke Clinical Network, metropolitan and regional hospitals, the Victorian Stroke Telemedicine Program, Ambulance Victoria and the National Stroke Foundation.

The system-wide approach is making ECR available to as many Victorians as possible in Melbourne and rural Victoria.

The protocol helps all hospitals to quickly identify suitable patients for ECR and transfer them to one of two ECR centres providing around-the-clock service. Monash Medical Centre will become the second state referral centre in 2017.

Victorian hospitals treat more than 14,000 people for stroke and related conditions every year. About one in six people will suffer a stroke in their lifetime. There are more than 110,000 stroke survivors living in Victoria.

For National Stroke Week, 12-18 September, the Stroke Foundation is urging everyone to think FAST when it comes to stroke. FAST is an easy way to recall that if you see someone with face, arms, or speech problems, they could be having a stroke and time is critical.