| For Immediate Release | Contact: Joyce Faria Brennan |
| February 4, 2008 | 508-961-5270 |
| brennanj@southcoast.org | |
 Get this release in Word format |
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DARTMOUTH, Mass. — Stroke survivors, their families, caregivers and friends are invited to join the Southcoast Hospitals' Stroke Support Group.
A friendly forum for sharing and learning, the Stroke Support Group is held the third Wednesday of the month from 4 to 5:30 p.m. at Heritage of Dartmouth, 239 Cross Road, North Dartmouth. Each month the group will offer information sessions with guest speakers and medical professionals.
"Our group is a comfortable environment for people to learn more about stroke and the recovery process," said Veronica Robdau, LICSW, a Social Worker at Southcoast Hospitals Group. "It is a chance for stroke survivors to meet others in similar circumstances and share like experiences."
For more information, call Veronica Robdau at 508-961-5769. Walk-ins are welcome. In case of inclement weather check the Southcoast website at www.southcoast.org/news/cancellations/
The three hospitals that make up Southcoast Hospitals Group — Charlton Memorial Hospital in Fall River, St. Luke's Hospital in New Bedford and Tobey Hospital in Wareham earned designation by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) as Primary Stroke Service providers in March of 2005.
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 designated as stroke providers are equipped to identify and treat stroke patients quickly by having care available 24 hours a day, seven day a week.
About Southcoast's Stroke Outreach
Southcoast has engaged in numerous efforts at preventing both heart disease and stroke through extensive outreach education on identifying and modifying risk factors.
All services are free of charge and fully supported by Southcoast Hospitals Group. Our stroke education efforts annually reach thousands of Southcoast residents in communities from Cape Cod to Rhode Island.
These efforts began in 1993 with outreach through the Southcoast Health Van and expanded with the addition of a formal research and prevention program that will ultimately provide data on the health habits and related conditions of thousands of residents in the South Coast region.
Other programs included an annual vascular screening, and blood pressure screenings and stroke education provided on a frequent basis at health fairs throughout our region. In the fall of 2007 Southcoast provided three regional programs: Act FAST: Save a Life. These programs offered education regarding stroke risk factors, recognition of signs and symptoms of stroke and emphasized the importance of calling 911.
To learn more, 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 advanced 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 has more than 40 ancillary facilities, including the Southcoast Health Van, home health care, hospice and infusion services, numerous outpatient medical services, an assisted living facility and a wellness center. For more information visit www.southcoast.org.
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
Public Information Officer
Phone: 508-961-5270
Pager: 508-387-9605
Fax: 508-961-5876
brennanj@southcoast.org
