New strategy to improve stroke care

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Health Secretary Alan Johnson will unveil a raft of new measures aimed at cutting the numbers of people who die or suffer disability following a stroke.

Among the expected plans are a £12 million public awareness campaign and faster access to emergency care.

Campaigners said the move was what "hundreds and thousands of stroke survivors have been crying out for".

Mr Johnson will say patients suffering a full stroke should have a brain scan in the next available scanning slot during normal working hours. Outside of normal working hours, they will receive a scan within 60 minutes before being swiftly moved to a stroke unit for appropriate treatment.

Studies have shown that patients who have their stroke confirmed by a scan quickly, and are given access to clot-busting drugs, have higher chances of survival.

Jonothan Earnshaw, honorary secretary of the Vascular Society, said patients suffering a TIA had stroke-like symptoms but then appeared to fully recover.

These patients do not realise they are at risk of a major stroke and that they need urgent treatment, he said.

He added: "Patients in the United States can expect to be treated within one to two days of a TIA. Vascular surgeons know that preventative stroke surgery saves lives if it is carried out early.

"At present the ultrasound services that are vital for diagnosis are a logjam as they are closed at weekends. In addition, patients themselves often do not seek treatment if the symptoms go away and GPs often don't refer these cases - so surgeons are not seeing patients early enough to make the difference."