Abstract

Background: Acute stroke is a serious medical emergency, and prompt treatment is key to better recovery. People in rural areas often face delays in getting the care they need because of fewer resources and specialists. The National Institute of Health (NIH) Stroke Scale (Appendix A) is a helpful tool for identifying and treating stroke, but it isn’t always used in emergency rooms. This project aims to improve stroke care in a rural hospital by increasing the use of the stroke scale and providing more education for healthcare staff.

Purpose: The purpose of this DNP quality improvement (QI) project is to reduce delays in acute stroke treatment and transfers through implementation of the National Institutes of Health Stroke (NIHSS) improve stroke care in a rural hospital in Central Nebraska over an 8 to 12-week period. The project aims to align NIHSS documentation and stroke care processes with Get With The Guidelines (GWTG)-Stroke, American Heart Association/American Stroke Association guidelines.

Sample/Setting: The sample consisting of 12 full-time and three part-time registered nurses, working in the Emergency Department (ED) at Grand Island Regional Medical Center - Bryan Health in Grand Island, Nebraska, over a period of 8-12 weeks.

Methods: This is a quality improvement project where emergency department nurses were educated on the proper NIHSS assessment and asked to collect data on every stroke-like patient that was presented to the ED. The Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle will be utilized during the 8-12 weeks implementation phase.

In the process of data collection- results and conclusion will be made available at the time of presentation.