IMPROVING STROKE CAREIN GREATER MANCHESTER

STROKE AND ITS TREATMENT

Stroke is the fourth biggest killer and the leading cause of disability in the UK

Around 6,000 people a year have a stroke in our region

Stroke care is provided initially at the region’s 9 stroke units, with specialist community teams supporting stroke survivors when they go home

These teams work closely with the voluntary sector to provide life after stroke support

Greater Manchester stroke services are overseen by a network that brings together professionals to plan and develop better care and support for stroke patients and their families

IMPROVING LOCAL STROKE CARE

Research shows that people are more likely to survive a stroke and spend less time in hospital if they are treated at a specialist centre called a Hyper Acute Stroke Unit (HASU)

Since re-organising our hospital services in 2015, over 90% of patients are now treated at one of our 3 HASUs at Salford Royal, Fairfield

General or Stepping Hill Hospitals

All of our HASUs are ‘A’ rated meaning patients receive the very best care

These changes have saved around 69 lives a year and patients now spend on average 1.5 days less in hospital after their stroke

UPDATE FOR 2018/19

CARE AT HOME

Support provided by specialist community rehabilitation teams and the voluntary sector varies across Greater Manchester

When home, patients in some areas may receive only limited help, support may be time limited or there can be long delays for treatment

Working with local NHS funders, a new model for community care is being rolled out across the region

This means every stroke patient will receive the same high quality care at home - all the support needed, at the right time, and for as long as required

Stockport has a new community team with another in set up in Eastern Cheshire

Salford, Rochdale and Bolton funders have provided extra money to bring their existing community teams up to the new standards

Manchester, Wigan, Trafford, Tameside and Oldham are currently planning how they will make the changes needed in the coming year

NEW DEVELOPMENTS IN 2018/19

HOSPITAL CARE

A new surgical treatment called thrombectomy is highly effective at removing blood clots, but is currently only available Monday to Friday 9-5pm

By working together, the region’s HASUs are extending the time window for the procedure to include weekends by the end of 2019, with plans to increase to 7am-11pm every day by 2020

Patients who have a bleed on the brain (called a haemorrhagic stroke) are more likely to die than those who have a blood clot

Work led by Salford Royal to improve care for these patients has resulted in less people dying from a haemorrhagic stroke

The network has a very active Patient and Carer Group who help decide what improvements are important and advise on making sure patients are at the heart of changes made to local stroke care

HEARING THE PATIENT AND CARER VOICE