Stroke services, stroke networks: is there an ideal model?
- 1Stroke Unit, Dept of Neurology, Jean Minjoz University Hospital, Besançon Cedex, France
- 2Stroke Unit, Dept of Neurology, La Tronche University Hospital, Grenoble Cedex, France
- Correspondence to: Dr Thierry Moulin Stroke Unit, Dept of Neurology, Jean Minjoz University Hospital, 25030 B Besançon Cedex, France; thierry.moulinuniv-fcomte.fr
Stroke programmes have a vital role to play in educating the public and primary physicians
Since their first development in the 1970s, the clinical effectiveness of stroke units has been demonstrated in many randomised controlled studies and meta-analyses. The rapid broad-scale implementation of stroke units and structured stroke care in general, has been hindered by many factors of a medical and economic nature. This suggests a missed opportunity for patients in medical terms since almost all stroke patients are hospitalised and it also represents an inappropriate allocation of financial resources.
Different models have been proffered to improve the quality of stroke care and rationalise …
