Each year about 700,000 people experience a new or recurrent stroke. Stroke is the nation’s third leading cause of death. On average, someone suffers a stroke every 45 seconds. Stroke is a leading cause of serious, long-term disability in the United States.

Recovery from a stroke should start minutes after it started. Nanticoke Memorial Hospital is committed to providing fast, accurate, and effective care to stroke symptom patients through our Certified Stroke Center. When a person is admitted to Nanticoke’s Emergency Department with symptoms of a stroke, a “Stroke Alert” is activated prompting a neurologist, hospitalist, nursing staff, CT tech, and nurse coordinator to respond immediately. 

Treatment for patients arriving at Nanticoke Memorial with stroke symptoms involves a multi disciplinary team approach providing each patient an evaluation by a physician within 10 minutes of arrival to the Emergency Department. For stroke patients, “clot busting” drugs such as t-PA are administered within 60 minutes of arrival to the Emergency Department.

Warning signs of a stroke include:

WEAKNESS
Sudden loss of strength or sudden numbness in the face, arm or leg (even if temporary)

TROUBLE SPEAKING
Sudden difficulty speaking or understanding or sudden confusion (even if temporary)

VISION PROBLEMS
Sudden trouble with vision (even if temporary)

HEADACHE
Sudden severe and unusual headache

DIZZINESS
Sudden loss of balance, especially with any of the above signs

If you experience any of these symptoms, seek IMMEDIATE emergency personnel assistance. Minutes matter. Call 911.