What Health Professionals Can Do On World Stroke Day

More than 5720 health professionals across Australia have taken the opportunity to participate in National Prescribing Service (NPS) professional development activities focusing on stroke prevention.

Stroke – What can I do? is the theme of World Stroke Day 2009 (29 October) and aims to improve global awareness of stroke prevention and encourage optimal management of stroke patients.

“World Stroke Day is an ideal time for health professionals to participate in the NPS therapeutic program, Antiplatelet and anticoagulant therapy in stroke prevention,” NPS senior clinical adviser, Judith Mackson said.

A focus of the therapeutic program is the use of warfarin therapy in reducing the risk of thromboembolic stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation, as well as ways to improve its safe use.

“Warfarin offers enormous benefits in reducing the risk of stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation but it is often underutilised. In a recently published Australian study, the majority of patients with known atrial fibrillation were either not anticoagulated or under-anticoagulated. This concurs with past international findings of inadequate anticoagulation of those at risk of stroke,” Ms Mackson said. – The National Prescribing Service Limited