Making Minutes Count with Telestroke

When timing is critical, Bibb Medical Center’s Telestroke program provides immediate treatment for patients.

Bibb Medical Center has recently become an accredited Level III Stroke-ready Center. To become a "Level III Stroke Ready Center," BMC completed an accreditation process that involved meeting specific requirements related to staff qualifications, diagnostic capabilities, treatment protocols, and performance measures, primarily focused on providing timely and appropriate care for stroke patients, and then submitting to a review the Alabama Department of EMS to achieve certification; this process includes self-assessment, data collection, and an on-site evaluation by an ADPH surveyor.

In the words of the National Neurological Disorders and Stroke, a stroke is a brain attack.

What makes a stroke terrifying is how quickly it permanently damages the brain when oxygen is no longer supplied to support brain function, making time an incredibly rare resource in these circumstances. To save time in the treatment of a stroke, a new telemedicine approach to stroke treatment, called Telestroke, is one of the most successful implementations of telemedicine that helps administer emergency treatment to patients just in time.

Patients living in rural areas often do not have access to rapid consultation with specialized neurologic teams for diagnosis and treatment of stroke. The use of telemedicine in the form of a telestroke consultation can improve timely diagnosis and treatment for rural patients exhibiting stroke symptoms. Telestroke has increased the percentage of patients receiving thrombolytics in less than 60 minutes, and door-to-needle time has decreased.

George Hipp, MD, Stroke Program Medical Director at Bibb Medical Center states, “The stroke-ready designation achieved by BMC represents a great accomplishment through the collaboration of Lynette Kornegay, RN, Kasha Finnen, RN, Gena Dowdle, RN, and myself - along with the help of Dr. Michael Lyerly and the Stroke Neurology team from UAB. The accreditation recognizes our ability to offer timely and optimized care to stroke patients in the community, our commitment to excellence in emergency medicine, and the forward-thinking attitude of our administration and staff. We are humbled and honored to serve the people of Bibb County and surrounding areas.”