News - St. Joseph's/Candler becomes the hub of stroke care in southeast Georgia

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St. Joseph's/Candler becomes the hub of stroke care in southeast Georgia

St. Joseph's/Candler is placing technology in rural hospitals that can save the lives of stroke patients. These 'spoke' hospitals will be able to have their patients diagnosed by neurologists in the Savannah 'hub' via internet video and uploaded brain scans.

This saves precious time because neurologists provide the expertise to make the decision to administer clot-busting drugs. These rural hospitals do not have access to neurologists on staff and patients used to face a long transport into Savannah.

But the St. Joseph's/Candler Stroke NET-work changes all that by putting neurologists virtually into rural emergency rooms.

Clot-busting drugs must be administered within three hours of the onset of stroke symptoms to minimize patient disability. Stroke occurs when blood to the brain is lost or a vessel in or around the brain bursts.

Neurologist and Medical Director of the SJ/C Stroke Program Dr. Frank Lafranchise spearheaded the effort to invest in the technology.

Augusta-based REACH Call, Inc. developed the technology. It was designed by Dr. David C. Hess, Professor and Chairman of Neurology at the Medical College of Georgia (MCG), and other MCG Neurologists in Augusta, Georgia.

SJ/C has placed REACH Call in:
• Effingham Hospital
• Wayne Memorial Hospital in Jesup
• Meadows Regional Medical Center in Vidalia
• Appling HealthCare System in Baxley
• Coffee Regional Medical Center in Douglas.

The southeast is in the 'stroke belt' of America and Dr. Lafranchise likes to say Georgia is in the buckle of that belt. The southeast has a 40 percent higher stroke death rate than the rest of the country, according to a recent study by the University of Alabama at Birmingham and the University of Vermont. Lafranchise said this is because of risk factors like high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol.

Stroke data
• Stroke is the third leading cause of death in Georgia.
• The stroke death rate in Georgia is 16 percent higher than the national rate.
• 23 percent of people who died from stroke in 2006 were younger than 65.
• Obesity, high blood pressure, lack of physical activity, diabetes and high cholesterol increase the risk of stroke.

- Data from the 2008 Georgia Department of Human Resources Data Summary.

To learn more, call Stroke Program Coordinator Julie Long at 819-2123 or send her an email.