Stroke Association statement on latest quarterly Sentinel Stroke National Audit Programme (SSNAP)

The latest Sentinel Stroke National Audit Programme (SSNAP) report relates to treatment for patients admitted between April and June 2015 and includes results for the entire inpatient care pathway. The results are available online at the SSNAP Results Portal. Commenting on the results Alexis Wieroniey, Deputy Director for Policy and Influencing at the Stroke Association said: 

“It is very heartening to see that in the latest SSNAP data, 14 stroke services scored an overall ‘A’ grade for the quality of care they provide for stroke patients. This is up from 11 in the previous results. The increase in hospitals achieving a world-class service shows that acute services are improving overall, however there are still key areas that need to be addressed.

“One area where change is urgently needed is the number of people who are admitted to hospital as a result of atrial fibrillation (AF) related stroke.AF is an irregular heartbeat which increases your risk of having a stroke five-fold. AF related strokes are often the most serious, with higher mortality and greater disability. The NICE guidance on treating AF was updated in June 2014, setting out that all patients with diagnosed AF should be offered an anticoagulant to reduce their stroke risk. SSNAP figures show that over the last 12 months the use of anticoagulation treatment has only increased by 4.4% (from 36.8% to 41.2%). This just isn’t good enough.

“After a year of new guidance, over half of the people having strokes caused by AF are not on appropriate anticoagulation treatment when they are admitted to hospital. These are avoidable strokes that might have been prevented. It is vital that GPs adhere to NICE guidance in prescribing the appropriate anticoagulant to patients to prevent devastating AF related strokes.”