Aurora news releases

Friday, March 07, 2008

When patients in the greater Green Bay area are treated at Aurora BayCare Medical Center for stroke, they are in good hands, according to the American Stroke Association. Aurora BayCare recently received the American Stroke Association’s Get with the Guidelines Silver Performance Achievement award.

“When it comes to patients with stroke symptoms, timing is everything,” said Neurologist James Napier, M.D., who is the stroke medical director at Aurora BayCare Medical Center. “We’ve been able to stay consistently above national standards and recommendations for treatments of strokes.”

Aurora BayCare has achieved these standards 85% of the time for at least 12 months.

The American Stroke Association’s award addresses the important element of time. Aurora BayCare has developed a comprehensive system for rapid diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients. This includes around the clock availability of brain imaging scans, staff experienced in the care of stroke patients and the ability to offer clot-busting medications when appropriate. Customized patient education materials are given to all stroke patients before they are discharged from the hospital to help patients reduce their risk of future stroke.

“By following these standards, patients recovery time are significantly reduced and their overall health is improved,” Napier said. “Ultimately, this will cut down on the number of patients who die because of strokes.”According to the American Stroke Association, each year approximately 700,000 people suffer a stroke – 500,000 are first attacks and 200,000 are recurrent. Of stroke survivors, 21 percent of men and 24 percent of women die within a year, and for those aged 65 and older, the percentage is even higher.

Aurora BayCare Medical Center is a 167-bed, full-service tertiary care hospital located at 2845 Greenbrier Road on Green Bay’s east side. It opened in September 2001 as a joint effort of Aurora Health Care and BayCare Clinic.

Aurora Health Care is a not-for-profit Wisconsin health care provider and a nationally recognized leader in efforts to improve the quality of health care. Aurora offers services at sites in more than 90 communities throughout eastern Wisconsin.

BayCare Clinic is the largest physician-owned specialty-care clinic in Northeast Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. It is comprised of 100 specialty physicians with expertise in more than 20 specialties. BayCare Clinic physicians have served patients in Green Bay and the surrounding region for more than 25 years.

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Contact: Krissy Behnke (920-496-6365)