People living in Barnsley, Bassetlaw, Chesterfield, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield are being invited to share their thoughts on proposals to change our region’s hyper acute stroke services where patients are treated and given care for up to the first 72 hours after having a stroke.

The proposals, incorporating public feedback, have been developed by Commissioners Working Together, a partnership of the region’s NHS clinical commissioning groups and NHS England to improve services across South and Mid Yorkshire, Bassetlaw and North Derbyshire.

Depending on where you live, some patients have better experiences and access to services than others – and doctors, nurses and healthcare experts all agreed that this shouldn’t happen – and have come together to change it.

Professor Graham Venables, former consultant neurologist and clinical advisor to Commissioners Working Together, said:

“By changing the way you receive care after having a stroke, we can make our services safer and of a higher quality whilst also reducing your chances of living with a disability afterwards.

“At the moment, some of our stroke teams don’t treat as many patients as teams in other hospitals, meaning they have fewer opportunities to develop their skills and introduce new treatments – which could mean that in the future, some of our patients may not get the best care they deserve should they have a stroke. This, combined with a national shortage of specialist staff, means we need to act now and use our staff and facilities in a different way to make sure that everyone in our region has access to the best services and fast treatments after having a stroke.

“For some patients in Barnsley and Rotherham, this may mean being treated in a hospital that isn’t their local one for the first 72 hours – but it also means they will receive high quality specialist care and we have been working with our ambulance service colleagues to make sure that all patients will be taken to their next nearest hyper acute stroke service unit within the critical time of 45 minutes.

“After the first 72 hours of care, or sooner if medically possible, you will be transferred to your local stroke ward for the remainder of your care. Rehabilitation services, such as speech and language, physio and occupational therapies which help you get better once you’ve gone home from hospital, will also remain closer to where you live.”

Between Monday 3 October 2016 and Friday 20 January 2017, members of the public are invited to share their views on the proposed option for the future of these services – with a final decision expected to be made by clinical commissioners in February.

Public meetings to discuss the proposals will be held in all areas over the coming months. Visit the consultation website www.smybndccgs.nhs.uk or call 0114 305 4487 for more information.