Abstract TP310: Overcoming Barriers to Reduce Door to Needle Times in Acute Ischemic Stroke Patients: Field to CT

Background: Time lost is brain lost. The ASA’s Target Stroke strategies were reviewed to improve Door to CT (DTCT) and Door to Needle (DTN) times. Taking acute stroke patients direct from triage to the CT scanner can reduce thrombolysis treatment times, which may improve patient outcomes. In April 2015, the JFK Comprehensive Stroke Center introduced a Direct to CT policy for acute stroke patients who are assessed to be acute by the JFK EMS service. Method: We performed a prospective pilot study comparing door-to-CT times (DTCT) and door-to-needle (DTN) times pre- and post-implementation of Direct to CT policy, and analyzed patient characteristics, Emergency Department (ED) presentation time, adverse effects, protocol violations and patient outcomes. Delays in treatment, enablers and barriers to treatment were also examined. The purpose was to look at feasibility and maintenance of quality when applied to a larger subset of patients. Results: There was no statistical difference in demographics or clinical ...