Kaiser Permanente telestroke program associated with increased alteplase administrations, shorter door-to-needle times

U.S. healthcare provider Kaiser Permanente says a telestroke program has streamlined the health system's stroke care across 21 hospitals. The redesigned acute stroke workflow sees a dedicated telestroke neurologist manage all emergency stroke cases across the hospitals. In comparing stroke outcomes of patients treated before the program went into effect against outcomes of patients treated after its implementation, the researchers found:

• After implementing the telestroke program, the health system's median "door-to-needle" time (DNT) fell from 53.5 minutes to 34 minutes;
• More than 87% of cases experienced a DNT time of fewer than 60 minutes with telestroke, compared to only 61% of cases beforehand; and
• There was no difference in the rates of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage before and after the program's implementation.