Stroke Rehabilitation
Reviewed 3/11/2024
Stroke: Myth or fact?
Stroke is the fifth leading cause of death in the United States. In fact, every 3 minutes, 14 seconds, an American dies from stroke, accounting for 1 out of every 21 deaths in the country. In addition, about 610,000 people have a stroke for the first time each year. Test yourself to see if you know the facts about this condition—and how to respond to it.
Myth or fact: A stroke is a type of heart attack.
Myth. A stroke is an attack on the brain, not the heart. Most strokes occur because a clot is blocking a blood vessel to the brain. Less frequently, strokes occur because a blood vessel in the brain has ruptured.
Myth or fact: It's hard to tell if someone is having a stroke.
Myth. FAST is an acronym that can help people identify when a stroke is occurring and respond quickly. It stands for:
Facial droop.
Arm or leg weakness.
Speech difficulty.
Time to call 911 to get that person to the hospital as fast as possible.
Myth or fact: After calling 911 for help, you should give an aspirin to the person having a stroke.
Myth. That instruction might be OK for a heart attack if the operator says to, but it doesn't work for a stroke. In fact, aspirin could worsen the situation if the person is having a bleeding stroke.
Myth or fact: A stroke can occur gradually, even over several days.
Myth. Strokes occur suddenly, usually without warning. If there is a warning, it comes in the form of a temporary stroke—called a transient ischemic attack (TIA) or warning stroke. Although symptoms of a TIA are temporary, you should take them seriously and see a doctor.
Myth or fact: You can recover from a stroke.
Fact. Most strokes are caused by blood clots. These clots can be broken up and blood flow to the brain restored if you get to the hospital quickly. After that, a stroke rehabilitation program can help you recover some or possibly all of the abilities affected by the stroke.
While it's possible to recover from a stroke, it's also possible to help prevent one from occurring. The first step is to find out your risk for stroke and talk with a doctor about ways to reduce it.
- American Heart Association. "Aspirin and Heart Disease." https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/heart-attack/treatment-of-a-heart-attack/aspirin-and-heart-disease.
- American Stroke Association. "Ischemic Stroke (Clots)." https://www.stroke.org/en/about-stroke/types-of-stroke/ischemic-stroke-clots.
- American Stroke Association. "Stroke Symptoms." https://www.stroke.org/en/about-stroke/stroke-symptoms.
- American Stroke Association. "TIA (Transient Ischemic Attack)." https://www.stroke.org/en/about-stroke/types-of-stroke/tia-transient-ischemic-attack.
- American Stroke Association. "Why Getting Quick Stroke Treatment is Important." https://www.stroke.org/en/about-stroke/types-of-stroke/is-getting-quick-stroke-treatment-important.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Stroke Facts." https://www.cdc.gov/stroke/facts.htm.
No one expects to have a stroke. But when one happens, we're here to help, first with fast care in our comprehensive stroke center and then with rehabilitation.
Located within the Emanate Health Queen of the Valley Hospital Acute Rehabilitation Unit, our Stroke Specialty Program is an inpatient rehabilitation service for patients recovering from stroke.
Discover more about how we help our patients and their loved ones as they work toward the transition from hospital to home.
When it comes to our patients and their loved ones, we want to provide them with the best possible care. That's why the Stroke Specialty Program at Emanate Health Queen of the Valley Hospital's Acute Rehabilitation Unit is accredited by the Commission on the Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF).
As an accredited Stroke Specialty Program, we deliver clinical services that focus on the unique needs of those we serve who have experienced a stroke. We work together with those we serve to:
- Reduce impairments and related complications
- Reduce activity limitations
- Maximize participation in daily activities
- Improve quality of life
- Reduce environmental challenges
- Prevent recurrent strokes
The goal of our intensive Stroke Specialty Program is to help people who are recovering from a stroke reach their highest level of independence so that they can safety resume active roles within their families and communities.
In order to help our patients reach that goal, we:
- Assess the patient's ability to perform self-care, daily living activities, transfers, mobility, speech, language, cognition and swallowing
- Involve the patient and their loved ones in developing rehabilitation goals and discharge planning
- Increase the patient's overall strength, function and quality of life
- Teach various techniques to compensate for physical, cognitive and communicative deficit
- Support the patient and their family/caregivers as they learn to cope with the patient's new physical and cognitive limitations
- Determine home equipment needs
- Arrange for further rehabilitation services and appointments as needed
- Provide community resources as needed
To provide the best possible care for our patients, our Stroke Specialty Program incorporates a variety of treatments and equipment that target a variety of physical needs.
Our treatment plans may involve the use of assistive technology such as AAC devices and Lite Gait. We may also have patients engage in certain therapeutic interventions, such as:
- Use of adaptive equipment
- Cognitive retraining
- Speech and language therapy
- Gait and mobility training
- Self-care and daily living activities
- Community reintegration
- Virtual reality activities
- Therapeutic activities, including dining, puzzles, gardening and dancing
- IOPI (Iowa Oral Performance Instrument)
- Orthotic consultations
- Videofluoroscopy swallow studies (VFSS) and flexible endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES)
- Neuro-developmental treatment (NDT)
Should urgent patient evaluation or medical intervention become necessary, we have the following services on-location:
- Cardiology
- Clinical nutrition
- Gastroenterology
- Neuropsychology
- Wound care
- Respiratory care
- Laboratory services
- Radiology and imaging
Our Acute Rehabilitation Unit team operates the Stroke Specialty Program. Our talented team of experts collaborates to create a unique rehabilitation plan for each patient. To learn more about our team, we encourage you to visit our Acute Rehabilitation Unit page.
The Stroke Specialty Program uses the same admission criteria listed on the Acute Rehabilitation Unit page. Questions about admission or referrals may be directed to our team at 626.814.2457.