Winston-Salem, N.C Rural and small, suburban hospitals in North Carolina and Virginia can now provide a higher level of emergency stroke and critical neurology care, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, as part of a new teleneurology medicine program announced Oct. 26, 2009, by Forsyth Medical Center (FMC). The program, coordinated through the Forsyth Stroke & Neurosciences Center, allows medical staff at participating hospitals to rapidly connect with highly trained, board-certified neurologists using videoconferencing technology at the patient's bedside.
Hugh Chatham Memorial Hospital in Elkin, N.C., Brunswick Community Hospital in Supply, N.C., Kernersville Medical Center in Kernersville, N.C., and Twin County Regional Hospital in Galax, Va., are participating in the network. A number of other hospitals will join the network in the future.
"Our program combines the vast resources of FMC's nationally certified, award-winning stroke center with some of the country's leading private practice and academic neuroscience physicians," says Cher Chase, M.D., medical director of stroke and neurocritical care at Forsyth Medical Center. "We can now quickly bring world-class emergency stroke and critical neurology care to hospitals that may lack 24/7 on-call neurologists or that want to strengthen their current primary stroke care services."
Because of the shortage of experienced, trained neurologists in smaller communities, many stroke victims bypass their local hospitals, causing delay in receiving treatment. Now, they can be treated locally, saving lives and improving the chances for a better recovery.
The new program will link participating community hospitals with FMC and Specialists On Call (SOC), a Joint Commission-accredited organization of board-certified, specialty trained, community and university neurologists. SOC neurologists have a minimum of 10 years in clinical practice and include nationally recognized physicians affi
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| Contact: Freda Springs fssprings@novanthealth.org 336-277-8601 Forsyth Medical Center Source:Eurekalert |