4 November 2024
Typically, health care professionals follow the catch cry “focus on people, not statistics”.
But for Grampians Health Horsham Stroke Coordinator Deidre Rennick, statistics matter just as much as individuals. In fact, she is rather obsessive about them.
Deidre has access to stroke-related data from more than 60 hospitals across Australia and is constantly comparing Horsham’s performance.
If, on average, it takes longer for someone in Horsham to receive life-saving medication than their city counterpart, Deidre wants to know why.
If another hospital improves its treatment times, recovery rates or rehabilitation outcomes, Deidre and the Horsham team figure out how to match it.
It’s this determination, to keep stride with the best research and outcomes, that has earned Grampians Health Horsham another two national awards for stroke care in 2023.
The first award, for ‘data quality’, recognises Deidre’s impeccable record-keeping.
The second – an Australian Stroke Coalition Quality Stroke Service Distinction Award – recognises that outcomes for stroke patients in Horsham are among the best in Australia.
For Deidre, the two awards are inextricably linked.
“The recommendations around how we care for stroke patients keep getting tweaked and, by taking part in national trials, we can remain at the forefront,” she said.
“We benchmark our performance with the top hospitals, in real-time, and we’re always trying to look at ways to improve.”
Not only does Grampians Health Horsham keep up with larger health services, but it also sets the benchmark for service delivery.
“We are often asked how Horsham does so well in this space and in many ways, our smaller size is an advantage,” Deidre said.
“We have daily multidisciplinary meetings, with everyone involved in a patient’s care, and that’s invaluable. Everything is also co-located; a CT scan is 50 metres down the hall and the rehabilitation ward is literally next door to the stoke unit.”
Deidre is involved in a patient’s care, from the moment they present to hospital, to their discharge from acute or rehabilitation care. Continuity of care is provided by the Community Rehabilitation Nurses who make sure patients don’t slip through the gap.
She, along with allied health professionals, doctors and specialists, assess and document every step of patients’ progress.
As a hospital, and a nation, this meticulous attention to detail has transformed outcomes for Australian stroke victims.
“In the 1980s, every person that had a stroke would be badly disabled and often end up in nursing homes,” Deidre said.
“We now have far better drugs, for managing strokes, and a lot more understanding about neuroplasticity where, with the right support, the brain re-models itself.
“There are far less of those big, bad, strokes and that’s because we’ve got better primary health care, better management and more public awareness.”
But, as she crunches numbers and analyses correlational data, Deidre foresees ongoing improvements.
“We’re taking part in a trial focused on patients who may develop specific complications within 72 hours of a stroke– a fever, high blood sugar or impaired swallowing,” she said.
“If we respond to those signs quickly, with certain interventions, we stop the process and reduce the brain damage, giving patients better outcomes.”
Deidre’s most recent challenge, as she edges toward retirement, has been finding someone just as excited about the data.
“It’s unusual for a rural hospital to have a stroke coordinator working four days a week, and that’s why we are so successful,” she said.
“After doing it alone for several years, I’m now excited to job share with Bobbie Pitt who joined us this year; it’s really important to have a succession plan and be training the next generation of stroke coordinators.
“We need this work to continue, because I absolutely know we’re making a difference.”
