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University Hospital - Joint Commission Certified Comprehensive Stroke Center
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A stroke
moves fast.

We can move
faster.

Learn the signs of a stroke B.E.F.A.S.T.

It takes just a minute.

Once it begins, stroke is like a wildfire. Getting treatment just one minute sooner can prevent disabling damage. So learn how to B.E.F.A.S.T. — Balance Eyes Face Arms Speech Time.

B.

Balance.

Try to walk, if you lose balance, call 911.

 E.

Eyes.

If your vision changes, call 911.

 F.

Face.

Try to smile. One side of the face does not move at all. Call 911.

 A.

Arms.

Try to lift both arms. If one drifts or doesn't move, call 911.

 S.

Speech.

Say something. If speech is slurred, doesn't make sense or can barely speak, call 911.

 T.

Time.

Call 911 immediately, even if you're not certain. Go to University Hospital. Time is brain. Starting treatment one minute sooner can stop the stroke before it does more damage.
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Keep scrolling to learn what a stroke does to you
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Ten Seconds.

1.5 miles of the myelinated nerve fibers linking you brain to your body are gone.

You are losing the ability to swallow.

Twenty Seconds.

5 billion synaptic connections burnt away.

5 billion memories are going up in smoke.

Thirty Seconds.

1 million neurons destroyed.

Affecting your thinking, learning, understanding.

Forty Seconds.

6 miles of nerve fibers lost.

Paralyzing muscles in your legs, arms, or face.

Fifty Seconds.

12 billion synapses vanish.

Devastating your speech.

One minute.

8 miles of nerve fibers. 2 million neurons. 15 billion synapses.

Gone forever. And the fire burns on.

A stroke moves fast.

We can move faster.

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The Joint Commission National Quality Approval

University Hospital is the FIRST Joint Commission Certified Comprehensive Stroke Center in South Texas.

Inside the EMS vehicle, paramedics send a signal to University Hospital Emergency Department that a possible stroke victim is on the way. The minute you arrive, our expert stroke team is there to diagnose the stroke and take action, prepared with powerful blood clot busting medication to stop the stroke and start the most appropriate treatment. They move fast. Every minute is critical.

You’re in the right hands at the right time.

University Hospital, in partnership with UT Health San Antonio, is the FIRST hospital in South Texas certified as a Comprehensive Stroke Center by The Joint Commission and the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. Certified Comprehensive Stroke Centers are the industry leaders that set the national standards in highly-specialized stroke care, with the state-of-the-art facilities, advanced technology, and highly-trained staff. This designation means you are in the care of an elite team of some of the best-trained and most experienced medical specialists and San Antonio’s only board certified Neuro-Critical specialists in our state of the art Neuro-ICU. We are ready around the clock to provide the best care and the best outcomes for even the most complex cases of stroke.

Leading-edge stroke care from San Antonio’s top hospital.

When every minute counts, University Hospital is ready: we’re also home to the only Level I Trauma Center in South Texas. We’re the first hospital in the region to earn a Magnet designation — the Gold Standard in patient care — from the American Nurses Association.

During a stroke, every minute makes a big difference.
At University Hospital, so does your stroke team.