NWO Regional Stroke Network & Superior North EMS Team Up for Annual Health Expo
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Do you know what to do if you think someone is having a stroke? This interactive booth at the Health and Wellness Fair taught people to recognize the signs of stroke and call 911 right away. |
May 6, 2017
The Health and Wellness Expo event is held annually at the 55+ Centre. This event provided an opportunity for the general public to learn about many areas of health and wellness. The Northwestern Ontario Regional Stroke Network, partnering with Superior North Emergency Medical Services participated in this health fair with an interactive approach.
Keli Cristofaro, Stroke Community Engagement Specialist and Marika Listenmaa, Superintendent, Professional Standards, Superior North Emergency Medical Services collaborated to develop an interactive display booth with the theme: Act FAST: The quicker you act, the more of the person you save.” We saw this event as an opportunity to impact the community members who drive themselves or have family/friends drive them to the hospital instead of calling 911. The North West LHIN has a very low proportion of stroke/TIA patients calling 911 and accessing EMS compared to the rest of the province. People need to understand that when they recognizing the signs of stroke, the critical next step they can do is call 911. The EMS teams are trained in the critical steps in early stroke management. The EMS team will provide them with brain saving care that will reduce time to treatment and hope to improve outcomes.
The participants were asked two questions: “Do they know the signs of stroke” and “Do they know why to call 911?
The interactive nature of the booth interested and challenged the participants. The interactive component involved taking a person through the critical steps of early stroke management. The participants learned about and developed an understanding of the “behind the scenes” that happen when EMS is activated.
Our message to the public is to recognize FAST and call 911 as EMS is part of their health care team pre-hospital and they can provide them with stroke care that will optimize their stroke outcomes.
Interested in learning more about the excellent advancements in stroke care in our region? Contact Keli at the Northwestern Ontario Regional Stroke Network at (807) 684-6468.
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Recognize the signs of stroke. Act FAST. |