​Stroke: Are Thousands Missing Out on Treatment?

I was most interested to read the recent BBC article commenting on the National Stroke Audit which revealed that around 9,000 stroke patients a year were missing out on treatment which could prevent disability following stroke.

The National Stroke Audit estimated that only 600 patients a year receive a therapy, known as clot retrieval, which can restore blood flow to the brain preventing lasting damage.

Part of the problem, affecting patients’ ability to access this potentially life-altering treatment, is deemed to be a lack of skilled staff able to perform the procedure.

The procedure, known as a thrombectomy, aims to remove clots of blood, which are the most common reason for a stroke. Blood clots prevent an active blood supply to the part of the brain they are clotting and the longer the brain is starved of oxygenated blood the more lasting, and severe, the damage will be.

A thrombectomy within hours of stroke, removing the clot, therefore limits the amount of time the affected area of the brain is without an oxygenated blood supply.

Thrombectomy has been deemed a safe and effective procedure by NICE (National Institute of Health and Care Excellence) but they advise that the treatment should only be carried out in places that have trained specialists with the necessary support staff and equipment.

The recent BBC article noted that unfortunately the Royal College of Physicians have stated that there is a major shortage of appropriately trained staff to undertake thrombectomy and there are also problems with recruiting consultants in this area with 40% of stroke services having an unfilled stroke consultant post.

The UK Stroke forum in a recent presentation estimated that one in ten people admitted to hospital suffering a stroke could be eligible for thrombectomy and such a procedure seems to have the potential to significantly limit disabilities suffered by those following stroke.

It is therefore a worry that there are insufficient numbers of appropriately trained, and qualified, staff able to perform these procedures, as without them stroke patients are being denied the opportunity for a more complete recovery.

As always my focus is on ensuring that patients have access to appropriate treatment in a timely and appropriate fashion and I hope that the recent research leads to an increase in the number of thrombectomy procedures being carried out so that more patients have the opportunity for a better recovery.

Hannah Bottomley is a clinical negligence solicitor with PotterReesDolan. Should you have any queries about clinical negligence issues or indeed any other aspect of this article and wish to speak to Hannah or any other member of the team please contact us on 0161 237 5888.