Stroke program to launch in China this fall

A new quality improvement program, slated to open this fall in China, will give researchers and doctors essential information to provide better stroke care.

The program, funded by Dublin-based Medtronic, is modeled after the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines-Stroke project, which helps hospitals improve stroke care and patient outcomes.

“It is with great excitement that we announce the launch of this collaborative stroke quality improvement project between the CSA and ASA to further enhance cooperation on clinical research, education and the impact of acute stroke science,” said Jizong Zhao, president of the Chinese Stroke Association, in a news release.

The new program will help amp up current initiatives by the Chinese government to collect information on stroke patients, said Xian Ying, MD, PhD, a U.S.-based researcher and cardiologist who is working on the new program. Because of the program, scientists will have data on characteristics, diagnostic testing, treatment, adherence to performance measures and outcomes in stroke patients in China.

In 2013, stroke killed almost two million people. Meanwhile, there’s only about 133,000 deaths caused by stroke in the U.S.

“We have observed that the quality of care may not be ideal as compared with what we have seen in the United States, so this project provides the opportunity to facilitate improvements,” Ying said in a statement. “Also, it will help the society because the cost of stroke is extremely high. Improvement in stroke care quality could ultimately translate into cost savings to the society.”