Note to editors: Complete list of hospitals can be found at http://www.mass.gov/dph/oems/trauma/list_of_hospitals.xls

For Immediate Release	Contact: Joyce Faria Brennan
March 28, 2005	508-961-5270
	brennanj@southcoast.org
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NEW BEDFORD, Mass. — The three hospitals that make up Southcoast Hospitals Group have earned designation by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) as Primary Stoke Service providers.

Charlton Memorial Hospital in Fall River, St. Luke's Hospital in New Bedford and Tobey Hospital in Wareham recently completed the rigorous application and site review process necessary to each be named among the state's Primary Stroke Service providers.

"We are very proud to serve as Primary Stroke Centers — a service that will further enhance the care of the acute stroke patient in the South Coast region," said Ronald B. Goodspeed, MD, MPH, President of Southcoast Hospitals Group.

"The Primary Stroke Service regulations were developed to ensure patients receive the best possible stroke care available. The designation of the three Southcoast Hospitals by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health is another example of Southcoast's commitment to providing essential services within our communities."

According to the American Stroke Association, someone in America has a stroke every 45 seconds. Stroke is the nation's No. 3 killer and a leading cause of severe, long-term disability. In Massachusetts, 17,799 people were hospitalized with stroke symptoms and 3,557 people died as a result of a stroke in 2002, according to DPH statistics. About 700,000 Americans will have a stroke this year.

DPH released guidelines for becoming a "Primary Stroke Service" provider in March 2004 in an effort to improve the care that acute stroke patients receive and to increase the likelihood that they receive care quickly. Hospitals wishing to become stroke providers were required to develop a Primary Stroke Service that meets the regulatory requirements for designation by DPH.

"It is the shared goal of DPH and Southcoast Hospitals to improve stroke care and awareness throughout our region," said Marcia Liggin, RN, Chief Nursing Officer for Southcoast Hospitals. "Under the new Primary Stroke Service designation, Southcoast will continue to provide advanced services and quality care for stroke patients."

Criteria for receiving the designation included written care protocols; having care available 24 hours a day, seven day a week; onsite neuro-imaging services, such as computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI); laboratory services; neurosurgical services; quality assessment and improvement programs, and the ongoing collection and analysis of data related to stroke. The education of hospital-based staff and an extensive community education plan were also required under the designation.

"Similar to knowing the signs of a heart attack, we want to continue to educate the community on the signs, symptoms and treatment of stroke and the importance of receiving treatment quickly," Liggin said.

The time-sensitive nature of stroke care can be attributed to the use of Thrombolytic (t-PA) therapy, or "clot-busting" drugs, in selected stroke patients. To be effective, t-PA should be administered as quickly as possible, but definitely within three hours. The use of the drug helps to re-establish blood flow to the brain by dissolving the blood clot in certain types of stroke. DPH requires that stroke patients be transported to hospitals that are prepared to rapidly diagnose and treat an acute stroke. The new DPH regulations require that ambulances with patients experiencing acute stroke symptoms be directed only to hospitals designated by DPH as Primary Stroke Services.

"A stroke is a 'brain attack' that requires emergency medical treatment attention," Liggin said. "The signs and symptoms of a stroke include the sudden onset of numbness or weakness in the face, arm or leg, confusion, trouble speaking or understanding, trouble seeing in one or both eyes, severe headache with no known cause. Remember, time is important and every minute counts. Call 9-1-1."

Southcoast will be working with DPH in support of the Massachusetts Partnership for a Heart-Healthy and Stroke-Free America program. In addition, Southcoast has launched a special Web feature to help educate the public about the risk factors for stroke and how to recognize the signs and symptoms of stroke and seek appropriate treatment.

For helpful links to community outreach programs, screenings as well as local and national stroke support groups and resources, visit www.southcoast.org/stroke.

About Southcoast

Southcoast Health System, a not-for-profit charitable organization, is a community based health delivery system with multiple access points, offering an integrated continuum of health services throughout Southeastern Massachusetts and East Bay, Rhode Island. It includes Southcoast Hospitals Group, formed in 1996 from the merger of Charlton Memorial Hospital in Fall River, St. Luke's Hospital in New Bedford and Tobey Hospital in Wareham.

Southcoast is one of three community hospitals approved by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health to perform open heart surgery and primary angioplasty beginning in Spring 2002.

Media Contact

Joyce Faria Brennan
Phone: 508-961-5270
Pager: 508-387-9605
Fax: 508-961-5876
brennanj@southcoast.org