Abstract 3387: Community Education: A Statewide Effort

Abstract

Background: The fourth leading cause of death for all Iowans is stroke. Southeast Iowa has higher mortality rates from stroke than northeast Iowa which indicates a geographic disparity in stroke care in Iowa. The stroke death rate in Iowa has decreased by 30% since 2000; however several risk factors for stroke among Iowans have increased since 2000. Iowa has 12 Primary Stroke Centers (PSC) that are located through out Iowa. The stroke coordinator at each PSC is a member of the Iowa Stroke Coordinator Consortium (ISCC). A goal of the ISCC is increasing stroke education to all Iowans. Purpose: To provide stroke education across Iowa, including recognition and appropriate response to stroke signs and symptoms. Method: The stroke coordinators of the 12 PSCs were asked to conduct a mock stroke drill. Two additional coordinators who are active in the Iowa Stroke Task Force, whose hospitals are not a PSC, were also asked to participate. Coordinators were asked to develop a scenario and conduct a mock stroke event in a public or in a hospital setting and summarize the event. Results: Ten hospitals participated in the event. Door to needle times were reported by five hospitals. These reported door to needle times were all less than 60 minutes. Six mock stroke events were conducted in public locations. The public locations included a farmer’s market, office building, sports arena, senior center, and two supermarkets. The remaining mock stroke events were conducted within a hospital. Public events included a debriefing of the event, review of stroke symptoms and response to stroke symptoms. One public event was featured in the local newspaper, and another on the local TV news. The mock stroke drills conducted within hospitals were beneficial in identifying opportunities for improvement in the response to stroke signs and symptoms. The staff involved was debriefed on the event and internal processes for stroke response were reviewed. Conclusion: The ISCC achieved its goal by conducting ten different mock stroke drills across Iowa. Each drill focused on the recognition of stroke signs and symptoms, and the appropriate response to stroke symptoms. The state wide mock events were conducted in collaboration with local communities, emergency services personnel, emergency room staff, and ancillary hospital staff. Future goals of the ISCC are developing more defined criteria for a mock event, an evaluation process after the event, and provide education on stroke risk factors to Iowans.