Stroke Team at Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital When a patient
arrives in the Emergency Department, the Acute Stroke On-Call
Team – consisting of the neurologist, nurses, laboratory staff
and imaging technologists – is activated with one call. This
multidisciplinary acute stroke team is available 24/7 and begins
immediate evaluation to determine the appropriate intervention
for the situation. What is a stroke? A stroke occurs when a
blood vessel that carries oxygen and nutrients to the brain is
either blocked by a clot or bursts. When that happens, part of
the brain cannot get the blood (and oxygen) it needs, so it
starts to die. A stroke may also be called a cerebral vascular
accident, or CVA. There are two forms of stroke: ischemic -
blockage of a blood vessel supplying the brain, and hemorrhagic
- bleeding into or around the brain. A transient ischemic stroke
(TIA) is a “mini stroke” or “warning stroke.” TIAs happen when
an obstruction (blood clot) occurs for a short time, then tends
to resolve itself. They