(Fairfax, VA, Tuesday, October 27, 2020) – Every 40 seconds, someone in the United States has a stroke. Nearly two million brain cells die each minute a stroke goes untreated. Stroke is the fifth most common cause of death in America, and the leading cause of adult disability.  The longer the brain goes without blood supply and oxygen, the higher likelihood of disability.

World Stroke Day is on Thursday, October 29 and it underscores the serious nature and high rates of stroke, raises awareness of the prevention and treatment of the condition, and ensures better care and support for survivors.

Emergency medical technicians can accurately diagnose stroke using stroke severity scales, but even patients correctly diagnosed by EMTs are most often triaged to the nearest hospital where they can wait for care while the brain dies.

Like in cases of traumatic injury, where patients are assessed in the field, and the critically injured are transported to Level 1 trauma centers, the Get Ahead of Stroke Campaign is working to ensure that patients with severe stroke are taken to a Level 1 stroke center.

Get Ahead of Stroke is a national public education and advocacy campaign designed to improve systems of care for stroke patients. Founded in 2016 by the Society of NeuroInterventional Surgery (SNIS), today the campaign is supported by a coalition of organizations with the goal of securing the best possible outcomes for stroke patients by driving policy change and public awareness nationwide.