Telestroke Network Fundamentals

The role of stroke care infrastructure on the effectiveness of a hub-and-spoke telestroke model in South Carolina

OBJECTIVE

To examine the relationship between stroke care infrastructure and stroke quality-of-care outcomes at 29 spoke hospitals participating in the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) hub-and-spoke telestroke network.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Encounter-level data from MUSC's telestroke patient registry were filtered to include encounters during 2015-2022 for patients aged 18 and above with a clinical diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke, and who received intravenous tissue plasminogen activator. Unadjusted and adjusted generalized estimating equations assessed associations between time-related stroke quality-of-care metrics captured during the encounter and the existence of the two components of stroke care infrastructure-stroke coordinators and stroke center certifications-across all hospitals and within hospital subgroups defined by size and rurality.

RESULTS

Telestroke encounters at spoke hospitals with stroke coordinators and stroke center certifications were associated with shorter door-to-needle (DTN) times (60.9 min for hospitals with both components and 57.3 min for hospitals with one, vs. 81.2 min for hospitals with neither component, p <.001). Similar patterns were observed for the percentage of encounters with DTN time of ≤60 min (63.8% and 68.9% vs. 32.0%, p <.001) and ≤45 min (34.0% and 38.4% vs. 8.42%, p <.001). Associations were similar for other metrics (e.g., door-to-registration time), and were stronger for smaller (vs. larger) hospitals and rural (vs. urban) hospitals.

CONCLUSIONS

Stroke coordinators or stroke center certifications may be important for stroke quality of care, especially at spoke hospitals with limited resources or in rural areas.

Virtual Obstetric Hospitalist Support for Obstetric Emergencies and Deliveries: The Mayo Clinic Experience

Objective: To implement use of obstetric (OB) hospitalist telemedicine services (TeleOB) to support clinicians facing OB emergencies in low-resource hospital settings. Methods: TeleOB was staffed by OB hospitalists working at a tertiary maternity center. The service was available via real-time high-definition audio/video technology for providers at 17 outlying hospitals across a health system spanning two states. The initial 25 service activations are described. Results: TeleOB supported 17 deliveries, two postpartum emergency department (ED) consultations, and four antenatal ED consultations. In 10 of 17 (59%) deliveries, teleneonatology was jointly activated to support neonatal resuscitation. Sixteen (94%) deliveries occurred in multiparas, and five (29%) resulted from spontaneous preterm labor. Eighty percent (20/25) of activations occurred in facilities without maternity services. Conclusions: A TeleOB service staffed by OB hospitalists successfully supports hospitals in an integrated health care system. TeleOB is feasible for support of hospitals with no delivery facilities or with limited maternity care resources.

Practical guidance for telemedicine use in neuro-oncology

While the COVID-19 pandemic has catalyzed the expansion of telemedicine into nearly every specialty of medicine, few articles have summarized current practices and recommendations for integrating virtual care in the practice of neuro-oncology. This article identifies current telemedicine practice, provides practical guidance for conducting telemedicine visits, and generates recommendations for integrating virtual care into neuro-oncology practice. Practical aspects of telemedicine are summarized including when to use and not use telemedicine, how to conduct a virtual visit, who to include in the virtual encounter, unique aspects of telehealth in neuro-oncology, and emerging innovations.

Stroke care networks and the impact on quality of care

Lack of rapidly available neurological expertise, especially in rural areas, is one of the key obstacles in stroke care. Stroke care networks attempt to address this challenge by connecting hospitals with specialized stroke centers, stroke units, and hospitals of lower levels of care. While the benefits of stroke care networks are well-documented, travel distances are likely to increase when patients are transferred almost exclusively between members of the same network. This is particularly important for patients who require mechanical thrombectomy, an increasingly employed treatment method that requires equipment and expertise available in specialized stroke centers. This study aims to analyze the performance of the current design of stroke care networks in Bavaria, Germany, and to evaluate the improvement potential when the networks are redesigned to minimize travel distances. To this end, we define three fundamental criteria for assessing network design performance: 1) average travel distances, 2) the populace in the catchment area relative to the number of stroke units, and 3) the ratio of stroke units to lower-care hospitals. We generate several alternative stroke network designs using an analytical approach based on mathematical programming and clustering. Finally, we evaluate the performance of the existing networks in Bavaria via simulation. The results show that the current network design could be significantly improved concerning the average travel distances. Moreover, the existing networks are unnecessarily imbalanced when it comes to their number of stroke units per capita and the ratio of stroke units to lower-care hospitals.

Provider Communication and Telepresence Enhance Veteran Satisfaction With Telestroke Consultations

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Telestroke has been demonstrated to be a cost-effective means to expand access to care and improve outcomes in stroke; however, information on patient perceptions of this system of care delivery are limited. This study seeks to examine patient feedback of a national telestroke system within the Veterans Health Administration.

METHODS

Patients who received a telestroke consultation were eligible for a phone interview 2 weeks later, including questions about technology quality, telepresence, and telestroke provider communication. Satisfaction scores ranged from 1 to 7 (higher=more satisfied) and for analyses were dichotomized as 6 to 7 indicating high satisfaction versus <6. Patient variables including stroke severity (measured by the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale) were obtained from study records. Generalized estimating equation models were used to determine what factors were associated with patient satisfaction.

RESULTS

Over 18 months, 186 interviews were completed, and 142 (76%) reported high satisfaction with telestroke. Patients with more severe stroke were less likely to recall the consultation. Factors significantly associated with patient satisfaction were higher ratings of the technology (P<0.0001), telepresence (P<0.0001), provider communication ratings (P<0.0001), and overall Veterans Affairs satisfaction (P=0.02). In the multivariate model, telepresence (odds ratio, 3.10 [95% CI, 1.81-5.31]) and provider ratings (odds ratio, 2.37 [95% CI, 1.20-4.68]) were independently associated with satisfaction. Veterans who were satisfied were more likely to recommend the technology (P<0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS

Provider qualities, including telepresence and provider ratings, were associated with overall Veteran satisfaction with the telestroke consultation. Technology quality may be necessary but not sufficient to impact patient experience. Training providers to improve telepresence could improve patient experience with telestroke consultation.

Outcomes of thrombolytic therapy in acute ischemic stroke: mothership, drip-and-ship, and ship-and-drip paradigms

Background

Chulalongkorn Stroke Center is a comprehensive stroke center (CSC) located in Bangkok, Thailand. Our stroke network consists of different levels of spoke hospitals, ranging from community hospitals where thrombolytic treatment is not available, to those capable of onsite thrombolytic therapy. This study aimed to assess the time to treatment and outcomes among acute ischemic stroke patients who received thrombolytic treatment in the Chulalongkorn Stroke Network by 1.) Direct arrival at the CSC (mothership) 2.) Telestroke-assisted thrombolytic treatment with secondary transfer to the CSC (drip-and-ship) 3.) Referral from community hospital to the CSC for thrombolytic treatment (ship-and-drip).

Methods

Acute ischemic stroke patients who received thrombolytic treatment during January 2016–December 2017 in the Chulalongkorn Stroke Network were studied. Time to treatment and clinical outcomes were compared among treatment groups.

Results

There were 273 patients in the study including 147, 87, and 39 patients in mothership, drip-and-ship, and ship-and-drip paradigms, respectively. The door-to-needle-time (DTN) and onset-to-needle-time (OTN) times were significantly longest in ship-and-drip group (146.5 ± 62/205.03 ± 44.88 mins) compared to mothership (38 ± 23/155.2 ± 60.54 mins) and drip-and-ship (63.0 ± 44/166.09 ± 87 mins), P < 0.05. There was no significant difference regarding functional independence defined by modified Rankin Scale (mRS) ≤ 2 at 3 months (P = 0.12), in-hospital mortality (P = 0.37), mortality at 3 months (P = 0.73), and symptomatic intracerebral hemorrhage (P = 0.24) among groups.

Conclusion

Thrombolytic treatment with drip and ship method under teleconsultation is feasible in Thailand. There was no difference of clinical outcome among the 3 treatment paradigms. However, DTN time and OTN time were longest in the ship-and-drip paradigm.

The Potential of Telemedicine to Improve Pediatric Concussion Care in Rural and Remote Communities in Canada

Concussion is a form of mild traumatic brain injury that affects thousands of Canadian children and adolescents annually. Despite national efforts to harmonize the recognition and management of pediatric concussion in Canada, timely access to primary and specialized care following this injury remains a challenge for many patients especially those who live in rural and remote communities. To address similar challenges facing patients with stroke and other neurological disorders, physicians have begun to leverage advances in telemedicine to improve the delivery of specialized neurological care to those living in medically underserved regions. Preliminary studies suggest that telemedicine may be a safe and cost-effective approach to assist in the medical care of select patients with acute concussion and persistent post-concussion symptoms. Here we provide an overview of telemedicine, teleneurology, the principles of concussion assessment and management, as well as the current state of concussion care in Canada. Utilizing preliminary evidence from studies of telemedicine in concussion and experience from comprehensive systems of care for stroke, we outline steps that must be taken to evaluate the potential of telemedicine-based concussion networks to improve the care of pediatric concussion patients living in underserved rural and remote communities in Canada.

Why are acute ischemic stroke patients not receiving thrombolysis in a telestroke network?

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to determine reasons for not giving intravenous tissue plasminogen activator to eligible patients with acute ischemic stroke in a telestroke network.

METHODS

We performed a retrospective analysis of prospectively collected data of patients who were seen as a telestroke consultation during 2015 and 2016 with the Arkansas Stroke Assistance through Virtual Emergency Support programme for possible acute ischemic stroke.

RESULTS

Total consultations seen were 809 in 2015 and 744 in 2016, out of which 238 patients in 2015 and 247 patients in 2016 received intravenous tissue plasminogen activator. In 2015 and 2016, out of the remaining 571 and 497 patients, 294 and 200 patients respectively were thought to be cases of acute stroke based on clinical evaluation. The most common reasons for not being treated in 2015 and 2016, respectively, were; (a) minimal deficits in 42.17% and 49.5% cases, (b) falling out of the 4.5-hour time window in 22.44% and 22% cases, (c) patient/next of kin refusal in 18.02% and 16.5% cases. Less common reasons included limited functional status, abnormal labs (thrombocytopenia, elevated international normalised ratio (INR)/prothrombin time (PT)/partial thromboplastin time (PTT), hypo or hyperglycemia etc), recent surgery and symptoms being too severe etc.

CONCLUSION

'Minimal deficits' and 'out of time window' continue to be the major causes for not receiving thrombolysis during acute ischemic stroke in both traditional and telestroke systems. Patient/next of kin refusal was high in our telestroke system when compared to traditional practices. Considering the increasing utility of telestroke this needs to be further looked into, along with the ways to address it.

Telemedicine Quality and Outcomes in Stroke: A Scientific Statement for Healthcare Professionals From the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association

PURPOSE

Telestroke is one of the most frequently used and rapidly expanding applications of telemedicine, delivering much-needed stroke expertise to hospitals and patients. This document reviews the current status of telestroke and suggests measures for ongoing quality and outcome monitoring to improve performance and to enhance delivery of care.

METHODS

A literature search was undertaken to examine the current status of telestroke and relevant quality indicators. The members of the writing committee contributed to the review of specific quality and outcome measures with specific suggestions for metrics in telestroke networks. The drafts were circulated and revised by all committee members, and suggestions were discussed for consensus.

RESULTS

Models of telestroke and the role of telestroke in stroke systems of care are reviewed. A brief description of the science of quality monitoring and prior experience in quality measures for stroke is provided. Process measures, outcomes, tissue-type plasminogen activator use, patient and provider satisfaction, and telestroke technology are reviewed, and suggestions are provided for quality metrics. Additional topics include licensing, credentialing, training, and documentation.

United States trends in thrombolysis for older adults with acute ischemic stroke

OBJECTIVE

Thrombolysis for ischemic stroke has been increasing in the United States. We sought to investigate recent trends in thrombolysis use in older adults.

METHODS

A retrospective, observational analysis of hospitalization data from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS) in 2005-2010 was performed. Older adults (≥65 years) admitted with a primary diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke were included. Trends in the population-based rates of thrombolysis and outcomes from the NIS were evaluated using the Cochran-Armitage test.

RESULTS

Thrombolysis in older adult stroke patients increased from 1.7% to 5.4% (2005-2010; trend P<0.001). Large increases were observed among urban patients, urban hospitals, and high volume facilities. Individuals ≥85 years were less likely to receive thrombolysis than younger ages throughout the study period, although there was an increase from an odds ratio of 0.50 (95% CI: 0.44-0.57) to 0.75 (95% CI: 0.69-0.81) from 2005-2006 to 2009-2010 when compared to 65-74 year olds. For those receiving thrombolysis, no change was observed in intracerebral hemorrhage over time. In-hospital mortality rates did not change significantly over the study period for age subgroups and length of stay declined from 2005 to 2010 for the thrombolysis group (7.6 vs 7.0 days; trend P<0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Rates of thrombolysis in older adults progressively increased, especially in the oldest old. Increases were largely driven by urban and high volume hospitals.

The cloud stroke unit: 24-hour acute stroke expertise-on-demand

The use of telemedicine, especially as it is relates to telestroke, has significantly expanded over the past one or two decades. The fact that stroke therapy is a time-critical disease process, coupled with the relative paucity of stroke-trained practitioners, makes telestroke an attractive technique of care. The authors' objective was to summarize the evidence that support the reliability of telemedicine for diagnosis and efficacy in acute stroke treatment in collaboration between hospitals in two different countries.