TY - JOUR T1 - Hyperacute neurology at a regional neurosciences centre: a 1-year experience of an innovative service model JF - Clinical Medicine JO - Clin Med SP - 119 LP - 126 DO - 10.7861/clinmedicine.19-2-119 VL - 19 IS - 2 AU - Kuven K Moodley AU - Valerie Jones AU - Mahinda Yogarajah AU - Bhavini Patel AU - Umesh Vivekananda AU - Pablo Garcia-Reitboeck AU - Kiran Samra AU - Gillian Cluckie AU - Oliver Foster AU - Anthony C Pereira AU - Niranjanan Nirmalananthan Y1 - 2019/03/01 UR - http://www.rcpjournals.org/content/19/2/119.abstract N2 - St George’s Hospital hyperacute neurology service (HANS) is a comprehensive, consultant-delivered service set in a teaching hospital regional neuroscience centre. The service addresses deficiencies in acute neurological care previously highlighted by the Royal College of Physicians and the Association of British Neurologists. HANS adopts a disease-agnostic approach to acute neurology, prioritising the emergency department (ED) management of both stroke and stroke mimics alike alongside proactive daily support to the acute medical unit and acute medical take. Rapid access clinics provide a means to assess ambulatory patients, providing an outlet to reduce the burden of referral from primary care to acute medicine. This paper reports the results from the first year of the service. Admission was avoided in 25% of the cases reviewed in the ED. Compared to historic data, there was a significant improvement in the length of stay for non-stroke disorders while the occupancy of stroke beds by non-stroke cases reduced by 50%. The configuration of this service is replicable in other neuroscience centres and provides a framework to reduce the barriers facing patients who present with acute neurological symptoms. ER -