Achieving Certification

Primary stroke center certification by the Joint Commission is based broadly on three components: standards, guidelines, and performance measures. Under the umbrella of components are 11 criteria that must be met for certification, according to M.J. Hampel, MPH, MBA, senior associate director of the Joint Commission’s Disease-Specific Care...

Saving Brain: Building the LA Stroke Network

In Los Angeles County, a 4,752–square-mile urban–suburban sprawl that is home to an estimated 10 million people, no one knows exactly how many acute strokes occur each year or how well they are managed. Nationwide, stroke is the number-three cause of death; stroke-related medical costs in 2010 are estimated at $73.7...