title: Telestroke Centers as an Option for Addressing Geographical Disparities in Access to Stroke Care in South Carolina, 2013.
abstract: Telestroke centers can increase access to proper and timely diagnosis and treatment of stroke, especially for rural populations, thereby reducing disability and death. Census tract information was used to map primary stroke centers geographically and to identify areas that would benefit from additional access to medical care via telestroke centers (health care facilities that provide information on stroke care from a distance). Results indicate that in 2013, approximately half of the South Carolina population did not have access to a primary stroke center within a 30-minute drive of their home, and 30% did not have access within 60 minutes. Increasing access to prompt evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment of stroke and improving long-term quality of life requires the addition of telestroke centers in areas without primary stroke centers and examination of the effects of these centers on stroke incidence and mortality in South Carolina.
authors.affiliation: Cancer Prevention and Control Program, Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina, 915 Greene Street, 2nd Floor #10, Columbia, SC 29208. Email: msamson@email.sc.edu.
authors.forename: Marsha
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Samson
authors.affiliation: Cancer Prevention and Control Program, Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina.
authors.forename: Tushar
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Trivedi
authors.affiliation: South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, Columbia, South Carolina.
authors.forename: Khosrow
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Heidari
mesh_terms: D040362:Geographic Information Systems; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D054625:Healthcare Disparities; D006801:Humans; D011788:Quality of Life; D013022:South Carolina; D020521:Stroke / Q000628:therapy*; D017216:Telemedicine; D013997:Time Factors; D014195:Travel