Provision of stroke services ‘a disgrace’

THE provision of services for stroke victims has been described as a national disgrace, with just 3% of the country’s emergency care requirement currently being met.

Dr Ronan Collins, director of stroke services at Tallaght Hospital, told the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) annual conference in Killarney that every acute hospital in the country should have a dedicated stroke unit.

At the moment Tallaght is the only hospital with acute stroke facilities compared with 90% of British hospitals.

“We have 10,000 people who suffer from stroke every year and about 2,000 will die,” he said. “It is a national disgrace that we don’t have stroke units in Ireland.”

His revelations came ahead of the publication of the first comprehensive audit of stroke services in Ireland. The Irish Heart Foundation said yesterday it will be published on April 9 and Dr Collins said it will offer a damning indictment of the level of care.

Yesterday, he proposed a motion to the IMO calling for the recruitment ceiling imposed on the health services to be lifted to allow the development of a stroke unit in every hospital accepting emergency patients.

This motion was adopted as policy of the IMO.

“The reality is: if hospitals are accepting patients who have had a stroke they should have a stroke unit. Because time is such an important factor in limiting disability and aiding recovery this needs patients need access to these units.

“The audit will show 3% of hospitals have a stroke unit which equates to one hospital. This is something that could save anywhere between 400 and 500 lives a year,” he said.

Dr Collins said, compared with the services in place for victims of heart attack, those who suffer “brain attacks” in the form of strokes were ignored.

Stroke is the third largest killer in the country and is the leading cause of adult disability with 30,000 people left with the lingering affects of an attack.

Dr Orla Hardiman, spokeswoman for the Irish Institute of Clinical Neurological Sciences, said the IMO decision to adopt as policy the prioritisation of stroke care was a positive development. She works out of Beaumont Hospital which has a stoke unit, but said this still does not have the necessary support staff to give patients the best chance of recovery.

“There are a substantial number of lives being lost but, if you look at the level of support available around the country, it is truly shocking,” she said.

Last night, the Health Service Executive said it was making the development of stroke services a priority and it falls under the remit of the Cardiovascular Health Policy Group, set up by the Department of Health in June 2007.

A HSE spokesman said planning for its stroke action plan is also under way and would be guided by the policy group.