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For immediate release

Halifax Regional Moves to Improve Quality of Stroke Care 
Halifax County Ranks 12th among North Carolina Counties in Stroke Death.

ROANOKE RAPIDS, NC – (June 5, 2007) –Stroke is one of the leading causes of death in Halifax County, and Halifax Regional is joining an innovative program to do something about it.
The Medical Center now is part of the North Carolina Collaborative Stroke Registry (NCCSR), one of only four such programs in the United States. The goal of the program is to improve the quality of stroke care.
A secured website hosted by the NCCSR is used to track indicators of quality care such as how long it takes a stroke patient to receive a CAT scan.  Halifax Regional can obtain real-time feedback on the quality of care provided at the Medical Center.  The rapid feedback provided by the NCCSR system moves quality assurance methods to a higher level by assessing quality of care while the patient is still in the Medical Center.
A stroke occurs when a condition such as a blood clot causes a restriction of blood flow to a portion of the brain causing symptoms such as numbness or weakness, confusion and/or various severities of paralysis.  A stroke can lead to permanent disability and even death and is the number three health related killer of NC residents.  Halifax County ranks 12th among the 100 North Carolina counties in deaths from stroke.
 “For patients who have experienced a stroke, time lost can equal lost brain function,” said Karen Daniels, Vice President of Nursing.  “If we can find ways to treat stroke patients just 15 minutes faster, that’s 15 minutes less time that the stroke has to damage the brain.”
Anita Holmes, Branch Head of the Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Branch at the NC Division of Public Health, said “Halifax Regional is to be congratulated for joining the North Carolina Collaborative Stroke Registry.  The Statewide movement makes every effort to enhance the quality of stroke care provided and improve health outcomes for North Carolinians.”
Funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention through the NC Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Branch (NC HDSP), the North Carolina Collaborative Stroke Registry is one of four Paul Coverdell Acute Stroke Registries in the United States.  The NC HDSP Branch partners with the University of North Carolina School of Public Health to implement the Registry.

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About Halifax Regional
Halifax Regional Medical Center is licensed for 206-beds, including psychiatric and nursery.