The comprehensive stroke program of Christian Medical College Ludhiana, in collaboration with the World health Organization (SEARO), launched in April 2020 with the aim of improving stroke care services in Bhutan, Maldives, Myanmar and Timor Leste.
The Team at Christian Medical College Ludhiana
The WHO SEAR project began its first phase in August 2020. This first phase empowered >50 healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses and therapists in Bhutan, in evidence-based stroke care across the care continuum. Phase one was successfully completed in Bhutan in April 2021, whilst similar initiatives are also currently underway in the Maldives and Timor-Leste.
Dr. Jeyaraj D Pandian, Principal and Professor of Neurology at Christian Medical College Ludhiana, India and Vice-President of World Stroke Organisation, who works closely on this study said: “We have been involved in building capacity for stroke care among the members of multidisciplinary teams in Bhutan, Maldives, Timor-Leste and Myanmar. These teams include doctors, nurses and rehabilitation therapists (physiotherapists, occupational therapists and speech and language therapists).”
Teaching sessions with four countries
Bhutan, Timor-Leste & Maldives have also successfully implemented standardized stroke protocols and have completed training in establishing stroke registries. The training and teaching programs implemented in Phase 1 will continue to run throughout the next phases, and will also include practical demonstration and case discussions.
In order extend the project, the next stage is to implement stroke care services and establish stroke units in 5 countries (Bhutan, Maldives, Timor-Leste, Nepal & Sri Lanka) and in Myanmar, if feasible. “Myanmar posed a challenge due to the political unrest in the country. Unfortunately, they could not continue in the study, but we hope they may be able to rejoin in the next stages of the project.” explained Dr. Jeyaraj D Pandian
Alongside this, the team are hoping to collect data on establishing stroke registries in each of these countries. This will help to inform the improvement of stroke care and future set-up of stroke registries and units in other countries.
Due to the successful outcomes and improved care continuum in the target countries so far, the project is also being extended to include Nepal and Sri Lanka in its second phase, which will run from May 2021 to December 2021. This will help to empower even more healthcare workers in improving stroke care across the globe. The team are also hoping to receive funding from WHO Geneva for an Implementation research of evidence based stroke interventions in Bhutan.
The team at Christian Medical College, Ludhiana, have highlighted that their planned future directions include:
“Despite the challenging times it is immensely gratifying to see improvements in stroke care and services in the region. The active participation of health professionals in these countries has only proven the heights to which Stroke care can improve.” said Dr Jeyaraj D Pandian.
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