title: Improved door-to-needle times and neurologic outcomes when IV tissue plasminogen activator is administered by emergency physicians with advanced neuroscience training.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The neurologic emergency department (neuro ED) at our medical center is staffed by emergency medicine physicians who have specialized neuroscience training and give intravenous (IV) tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) independently for acute ischemic stroke patients. Door-to-needle (DTN) times, discharge location, and discharge National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores were studied between the neuro ED and main emergency department (ED) with the hypothesis that all measures would be better in the neuro ED group.
  
  
  METHODS
  This is a retrospective study evaluating DTN time, discharge outcomes, and discharge location in acute stroke patients who received IV tPA at our comprehensive stroke center. These outcome measures were compared between patients who were evaluated and treated in our neuro ED to those treated in our main ED.
  
  
  RESULTS
  From 2012 to 2014, 67 acute stroke patients received IV tPA in our ED. Thirty-five patients were evaluated in the neuro ED, and 32, in the main ED. Average DTN times were significantly faster in the neuro ED at 35 minutes, compared to main ED DTN times of 83 minutes. Discharge NIHSS score was significantly lower, and more patients were discharged to home in the neuro ED group compared to the main ED group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Trained neuro ED physicians can safely give IV tPA independently for stroke patients with improved DTN times, lower discharge NIHSS, and higher likelihood of being discharged to home compared to the main ED physicians who used teleneurology consultation. This suggests utility in training emergency medicine physicians to administer tPA independently based on clinical practice guidelines.
authors.affiliation: Capital Health Regional Medical Center, Trenton, NJ, USA; Capital Institutes for Neurosciences, Pennington, NJ, USA. Electronic address: kgreenberg@capitalhealth.org.
authors.forename: Karen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Greenberg
authors.affiliation: Capital Health Regional Medical Center, Trenton, NJ, USA; Capital Institutes for Neurosciences, Pennington, NJ, USA.
authors.forename: Christina R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Maxwell
authors.affiliation: Capital Health Regional Medical Center, Trenton, NJ, USA; Capital Institutes for Neurosciences, Pennington, NJ, USA.
authors.forename: Keisha D
authors.initials: KD
authors.lastname: Moore
authors.affiliation: Capital Health Regional Medical Center, Trenton, NJ, USA; Capital Institutes for Neurosciences, Pennington, NJ, USA.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: D'Ambrosio
authors.affiliation: Capital Health Regional Medical Center, Trenton, NJ, USA; Capital Institutes for Neurosciences, Pennington, NJ, USA.
authors.forename: Kenneth
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Liebman
authors.affiliation: Capital Health Regional Medical Center, Trenton, NJ, USA; Capital Institutes for Neurosciences, Pennington, NJ, USA.
authors.forename: Erol
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Veznedaroglu
authors.affiliation: Capital Health Regional Medical Center, Trenton, NJ, USA; Capital Institutes for Neurosciences, Pennington, NJ, USA.
authors.forename: Geri
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sanfillippo
authors.affiliation: Capital Health Regional Medical Center, Trenton, NJ, USA; Capital Institutes for Neurosciences, Pennington, NJ, USA.
authors.forename: Cynthia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Diaz
authors.affiliation: Capital Health Regional Medical Center, Trenton, NJ, USA; Capital Institutes for Neurosciences, Pennington, NJ, USA.
authors.forename: Mandy J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Binning
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D004635:Emergency Medicine / Q000193:education / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009488:Neurosciences / Q000193:education*; D058996:Quality Improvement / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D020521:Stroke / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D013997:Time Factors; D010959:Tissue Plasminogen Activator / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D000078329:Workforce
chemical_list: D010959:Tissue Plasminogen Activator