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Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital Foundation announced Friday that the UniHealth Foundation awarded a $750,000 grant to support Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital’s Diabetes Education and Prevention Program.

National Stroke Awareness Month Wrapping Up In Santa Clarita

As National Stroke Awareness Month comes to a close, stroke experts from Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital are continuing to raise awareness within the Santa Clarita community about the warning signs and risk factors for the potentially deadly disease.


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The No. 5 cause of death and leading cause of disability in the U.S., a stroke occurs when a blood vessel carrying oxygen and nutrients to the brain is blocked by a clot or bursts, causing nearly 2 million brain cells to die every minute it is left untreated, according to the American Stroke Association.

“(Raising awareness) is very important because there is treatment available for stroke nowadays,” said Lorisha Rathnum-Clark, an R.N. and stroke navigator at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital, which was named an Advanced Primary Stroke Center by the Joint Commission in 2010.

One such treatment, known as TPA, is available for patients who have suffered a blood clot in the brain. However, Rathnum-Clark emphasized that in order for the medication to be effective, the patient must get to the hospital within 4.5 hours of symptom onset.

“It’s important for the community to be able to identify the signs and symptoms of stroke so they can call 9-1-1 and get to the hospital as soon as possible,” she said.

The acronym F.A.S.T. is used by medical professionals to help educate the public on identifying these signs and symptoms, which stands for Face, Arms, Speech and Time.

“‘Face’ is if you think that someone’s having a stroke, ask the patient to smile. If there’s a droop, there’s one sign,” Rathnum-Clark explained. “Or you can have them raise both arms, and that’s the ‘A.’ If one arm droops that’s a sign. Then for ‘Speech,’ ask them to repeat a simple phrase. If their speech is slurred, that’s an indication. And then ‘T’ for ‘Time’: if the symptoms last more than five minutes, call 9-1-1.”

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The American Stroke Association reports that 80 percent of all strokes are preventable. Risk factors for the disease include conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, irregular heart rhythm, smoking, poor diet, obesity, physical inactivity and cardiovascular disease, according to Rathnum-Clark.  

“From a preventative standpoint, high blood pressure and high cholesterol, (Type 2) diabetes, all of that can be controlled by lifestyle modification or eating a healthier diet, maintaining a healthier weight, engaging in physical activity,” she said, adding that getting an annual physical is also key.  

As a stroke navigator for Henry Mayo’s stroke care program, Rathnum-Clark regularly educates both patients at the hospital and members of the Santa Clarita community on stroke, in addition to coordinating the care of stroke patients and working to improve the quality of the hospital’s stroke program whenever possible.

The healthcare team at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital treats around 500 stroke patients every year, and the program is “a collaborative effort” by a variety of departments within the hospital, according to Rathnum-Clark.

An ongoing stroke support group is also held at the hospital the second Wednesday of every month, and is open to the public regardless of where a patient was treated.

Established in 2009 and named an Advanced Primary Stroke Center one year later, the American Heart Association has recognized Henry Mayo’s stroke care program four years in a row with the Gold Plus Award for providing quality care.

“As an Advanced Primary Stroke Center, we strive to make sure that patients are receiving the treatment they need … in order to ensure that they have positive outcomes,” Rathnum-Clark said. “The hospital has earned this designation as a stroke center because we have specific quality achievement measures that we have to maintain for the diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients, and we continually meet those requirements.”

For more information about the stroke support group or the stroke care program at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital, call 661-200-1440.

Ed. Note: This article is a KHTS Feature story based on a recent interview with Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital.

Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital is a 238-bed, not-for-profit community hospital and trauma center in Santa Clarita. The Henry Mayo Hospital emergency department is open 24-7 to provide critical life-saving services, with a panel of physicians available around the clock for critical healthcare needs. In addition, a number of specialized care services are also available, including a maternity department, community hospital cancer program, advanced primary stroke center, spine and joint program, acute rehab unit, cardiology services, outpatient wound care, physical and occupational therapies and a wide range of surgical services.

Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital

23845 McBean Parkway

Valencia, CA 91355

661-253-8000

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KHTS AM 1220 - Santa Clarita Radio

National Stroke Awareness Month Wrapping Up In Santa Clarita

One comment

  1. No one bothered to mention all the problems in stroke:
    tPA only fully works to reverse the stroke 12% of the time.
    Only 10% of survivors almost fully recover.
    No cure for spasticity.
    No cure for fatigue.
    No therapies to prevent your 33% chance on getting dementia.
    No interventions that stop the neuronal cascade of death in the first week.
    No publicly available rehab stroke protocols with efficacy percentages.

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About Melissa Lampert-Abramovitch

Melissa Lampert-Abramovitch has been writing for KHTS since Feb. 2014. She currently writes “Community Spotlight” and feature stories, and coordinates all aspects of both the”KHTS Adopt a Pet” video feature series and “Top Things to Do in Santa Clarita.” She is the creator of “KHTS Adopt a Pet” and acted as News Editor from 2019-2020, as well as Features Director and Newsroom Manager from 2016-2018. A former Valley Publications Staff Writer, Melissa was a contributor to the Santa Clarita Gazette and Canyon Country Magazine from 2015-2016. She has published feature stories with Pet Me Magazine, The Pet Press, The Signal, COC's Cougar News, and KJAMS Radio.