Four Year Data of a Newly Established Stroke Unit: A Physiotherapy Perspective
Background:
The Joondalup Health Campus (JHC) is a secondary hospital in Perth, WA. In February 2019, the JHC Stroke Unit was established to enhance stroke survivor care in the northern suburbs. It provides comprehensive stroke inpatient (12 beds) and outpatient services to ensure a complete continuum of care for stroke patients. It is staffed by four Stroke Physicians, Clinical Nurse Specialists, Physiotherapists, Occupational Therapists, Speech Therapists, Dietician and Social Worker. It was set up utilising the recommendations of the National Stroke Foundation Guidelines for Stroke Rehabilitation and Recovery.
Aims:
The primary objective is to analyse referral patterns, length of stay, discharge destination, and physical outcome measures of patients admitted to the JHC stroke unit as an ongoing Quality Improvement Project.
Methods:
A database has been maintained by the Senior Physiotherapist since the stroke unit’s inception. The current analysis includes all patients admitted to the JHC Stroke Unit from February 2019 – December 2022. Data collection includes but is not limited to type, side and location of stroke, 4 Point Pusher Scale, Berg Balance Score, ambulation status, 10 metre Walk Test (10mWT), discharge destination and follow up services initiated.
Results:
The data shows that 73.1% of stroke survivors are admitted via the Emergency Department and 64.7% are over the age of 65. 83.2% of patents are discharged home with 3.1% transferring to another rehabilitation unit and 5.8% moving into Residential Aged Care. Of the patients discharged home, 96% are discharged within 30 days and 78.3% are ambulant in the community.
Conclusion:
The JHC Stroke Unit is achieving excellent patient outcomes as demonstrated by this analysis of the Physiotherapy Database and is at par with the standards of the Australian Stroke Clinical Registry. The database will be analysed annually to assist in continuing to review our processes and practices.