North East Herts MP Sir Oliver Heald, who is a strong supporter of the Stroke Association, has contacted East and North Herts Clinical Commissioning Group, to see what work they have been doing to improve and increase awareness of strokes and how to tackle them. The Clinical Commissioning Group have come back to explain that they have done a great deal to raise awareness and that further activity is planned.
· ENHCCG has reminded GPs and practice staff to send patients with a TIA (Transient Ischaemic Attack or mini-stroke) directly to the nearest specialist stroke hospital, i.e. the Lister Hospital in Stevenage, rather than the QE2 Hospital in Welwyn Garden City. In addition, ENHCCG has reiterated the message "every minute counts" with a stroke or TIA.
· ENHCCG approached The Mercury newspaper to raise awareness of TIA. They subsequently ran a double page spread during the week ending 4 April 2014 on stroke and TIA, with localized figures provided by ENHCCG. They also provided a quote from Dr Robin Christie, GP Board Member and Long Term Conditions Lead, and Dr Jon Baker, Consultant at the Lister Hospital.
· ENHCCG issued a press release to local newspapers quoting a local case study of a man who had a "funny turn" which turned out to be a TIA. The release and photograph of the man involved were highlighted in their web page.
· ENHCCG also used their Twitter account to publicise TIAs on two occasions, using the Stroke Association’s hashtag, #notjustafunnyturn.
Commenting, Sir Oliver said, "I am a strong supporter of the Stroke Association and their "Not Just a Funny Turn" Campaign. I welcome the actions taken by the local Clinical Commissioning Group to raise public and professional awareness of TIA and it is good to know that further activity is planned".