Interdisciplinary stroke care can dramatically improve the outcome of stroke patients and provide them good quality of life, stroke care experts have said.
The road to recovery from a stroke is a long process and often involves emergency management and treatment, management of patients in stroke unit, secondary prevention strategies, and proper rehabilitation strategies, it was pointed out at the international conference on Essentials of Stroke Care that concluded here on Sunday.
The two-day conference, organised by the Department of Neurology at Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute of Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST), in collaboration with the University of Central Lancashire (UCLAN), UK, brought together stroke neurologists, physicians, nurses, speech therapists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists and psychologists from the UK and across India to share their knowledge, expertise and experience on stroke care.
First-of-its-kind
“This conference is the first-of-its-kind to be held in the country involving multidisciplinary health professionals who are part of stroke care and rehabilitation.
It was organised as part of an on-going research project on improving stroke care in India, involving SCTIMST, CMC Ludhiana, AIIMS and UCLAN,” P.N. Sylaja, head of the Comprehensive Stroke Programme, SCTIMST and Professor of Neurology, said.
The two-day meeting discussed all aspects of stroke care, including the diagnosis and treatment of acute stroke, secondary prevention and rehabilitation strategies.
Workshops on physiological and neurological monitoring of stroke patients, dysphagia assessment and management, stroke specific education framework, nutrition and hydration, care of ventilated patients, communication strategies, and long-term care were also held.
The training programme will help create a network of professionals across the State, trained in all aspects of stroke care, who could provide valuable inputs to the community on caring for stroke patients.
Over 350 delegates from across the country attended the conference.
