Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to improve response times to recommendations for endovascular thrombectomy treatment for severe strokes which can be administered only within 24 hours.

In March 2018, NHS England published their policy document ‘Clinical Commissioning Policy Proposition: Mechanical thrombectomy for acute ischaemic stroke’ which outlines key recommendations for diagnosis, referral, and patient pathways for intervention, and treatment.

The document can be accessed at the following link:

https://www.engage.england.nhs.uk/consultation/clinical-commissioning-consultation-may-2017/user_uploads/mechanical-thrombectomy-policy-proposition.pdf

Stroke treatment outcomes are monitored by the Sentinel Stroke National Audit Programme against outcome measures for services which include:

- Time from onset to thrombectomy;

- Time from onset to arrival at thrombectomy centre;

- Time from arrival to arterial puncture; and

- Time from arterial puncture to thrombectomy.