The Department of Emergency Medicine assists launch of the UC Health first-in-region Mobile Stroke Unit (MSU).

The vehicle is a fully equipped ambulance, but the Mobile Stroke Unit also has a CT scanner and everything needed to to treat a possible stroke patient during transport to the hospital.

The MSU can provide a CAT scan, determine a diagnosis, communicate with our stoke team, and deliver time-sensitive treatment within minutes.  And minutes matter when it comes to brain cells, and rapid diagnosis and treatment is critical for a stroke patient, improving overall functional outcome and potentially even life or death.

The MSU will be staffed with a UC Health Mobile Care paramedic, an EMT, an RN trained in critical care and a CT technician, and the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Stroke Team physician will respond via telemedicine.

As of right now the unit will only respond within 15 minutes of that location, but once a patient has been picked, up they can go to whichever hospital they choose, and officials say they hope to expand that response radius in the future.