Brain stroke is a medical emergency wherein there is serious disruption of blood supply to the brain. This might be because the blood vessel is blocked (ischemia) or there is a leak from the blood vessel (haemorrhage).

In India, every 40 seconds a patient has a stroke and in every 4 minutes a patient dies because of stroke. Stroke is the most common cause of disability in India, which makes a person crippled and disabled for life.

If a patient with stoke reaches the hospital in time and the health care centre identifies and treats this patient immediately, the impact of stroke is significantly reduced.

In an endeavour to take this vision forward Narayana Health, eastern cluster, has introduced spoke and hub stroke model to ensure best access to stroke treatment across three geographical regions- Kolkata, Howrah and Barasat. This programme was launched at the Press Club on Saturday.

Dr. Kaushik Sundar, clinical lead for comprehensive stroke care, said “When it comes to brain stroke- time is brain. Many a times, patients with brain stroke reach nearby hospitals for immediate care. By the time the diagnosis of brain stroke is made or an expert sees this patient, vital time is lost. Narayana Health group of hospitals are unique in this way that all their medical records, investigations and imaging facilities are interconnected. For example, if a patient gets admitted in Barasat unit and undergoes a CT scan, the images will be immediately available to a Stroke team who are sitting out in Kolkata. The stroke team can then decide whether that patient needs to be shifted to a higher centre for advanced therapeutic options. Narayana Health is offering this service to the patients 24x7 with no additional cost. This networking ensures seamless referral, expert consultation and best treatment to the patient throughout the day.”

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In addition to this robust telestroke and referral system, NH Rabindranath Tagore International Institute of Cardiac Sciences also announced the launch of its stroke clinics. Patients who had previously suffered a brain stroke, reach out to multi-speciality hospitals for investigations and expert opinion.

Stroke clinic introduces stroke investigation package, including MRI brain at affordable rates. It ensures specialists consultations- including expert neuro-physician, cardiologist, diabetes specialist, rehabilitation specialist and dietician advise in a single hospital visit. This model will then be implemented in coming months across all the NH centres in and around the city.

Narayana Health, Eastern cluster of hospitals has been performing state of the art, complex neuro-interventional procedures over the last few years. They had placed a stent inside the brain for a patient with stroke the first of its kind in Howrah district. The neurovascular team had performed a complex procedure in a patient with cerebral venous thrombosis, wherein a clot in the brain was sucked out with a catheter.

This unique technique was reported and published in a peer reviewed international journal. For a patient with aneurysmal bleed (leaking blood vessel) a new kind of stent called ‘Silk vista Flow diverter’ was used for the first time in Eastern India.

“Though these procedures are futuristic and state of the art, the core issue is that many of these patients don’t reach the hospital in good time” said Dr. Arindam Ghosh, Consultant Neurologist at NH Howrah. “Stroke treatment has best impact if patient reaches the hospital immediately and the health care workers in the hospital address the needs of this patient immediately.”

Stroke hero programme, an initiative of NH Group of hospitals, honoured health care workers and relatives of stroke patients who brought them to the hospital quickly and ensured that best treatment was available to them immediately.