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MRH&C to Focus on EMS/Acute Stroke Care in Statewide Quality Improvement Initiative

Posted 1/21/25 (Tue)

Photo: FAST is an easy way to remember the signs of stroke and when to call 911.

Mobridge Regional Hospital plays a critical role in ensuring access to life-saving treatments for stroke patients. In 2024 alone, EMS and ER staff provided care for 15 different stroke patients. The organization already keeps track of important indicators of care quality, such as arrival time to CT scan time. Over the next three years, the hospital will have the opportunity to work at the forefront of improving post-acute stroke care in South Dakota.

Hospital medical and administrative staff will be assisting in the implementation of state-wide Mission: Lifeline Stroke initiative activities. Work will be focused on improving individual site performance and quality of care for stroke patients in our region and across South Dakota. MRH&C is excited to collaborate with partners on the project.

The first step in the partnership was for Mobridge Regional Hospital to enroll in the Get with The Guidelines®-Stroke program and receive training on abstracting and entering data through that system. Without sharing patient identifiers, MRH&C staff will be able to enter data about the prehospital care, rehabilitation, and post discharge follow-up of stroke patients. This data will be used in a state-wide review of stroke care.

Throughout the three-year collaboration, Mobridge Regional Hospital staff will also be invited to participate in a variety of task forces and subcommittees, attend related educational workshops, conferences and trainings, and develop local community-based public awareness activities. The team hopes that through this process, MRH&C will discover ways to improve local internal processes while also creating more public awareness around stroke prevention, recognition, and rehabilitation.

Sharing rural perspectives and experiences working with stroke patients at a critical access hospital will be one of the ways local healthcare professionals will help with the formalization of a plan for the South Dakota Stroke System of Care. The final document will include a plan for ongoing stroke education, data collection and sharing, leadership and process improvement. Staff are excited to take such a proactive role in the process.

This collaboration underscores the hospital’s ongoing efforts to enhance outcomes for stroke patients in our community through the delivery of evidence-based treatment. At MRH&C, care teams recognize that timely and effective stroke care can mean the difference between life and death or full recovery and long-term disability. This partnership will help ensure patients at MRH&C are being provided with care that meets the highest standards.