Today, Healthcare Inspectorate Wales (HIW) has published a report setting out the findings of a review of patient flow in Wales through the stroke pathway

The ‘National review of patient flow: a journey through the stroke pathway’ report focuses on a person’s journey through the stroke pathway; from the point of requesting an ambulance or people self-presenting at the emergency department, through to discharge from hospital or transfer of care to other services.

Central to the review were the experiences of people accessing care and treatment for stroke at each stage of care, from calling for an ambulance, to assessment, inpatient treatment, and through to discharge. 

In addition, the review asked for the options and experience of social care and local authority staff on the challenges faced in effective discharge of people from hospital.

The review highlights a range of initiatives, models of care and approaches being taken within health and social care systems to tackle the issues and to improve outcomes for people. 

The review found that there are a variety of factors impacting discharge delays for people who are medically fit for discharge including:

• Resources – Timely social worker allocation 
• Commissioning of care packages to domiciliary care agencies – due to limited capacity across the sector being further compounded by insufficient staff resources
• Limited placement sufficiency in care homes 
• System level issues with cross boundary packages, including differing referral routes and IT systems

Although no single solution can improve flow, the review identifies several opportunities for the health and social care system to make improvements across each stage of the pathway that may help improve outcomes for people.  

To see all the findings and recommendations, read the full report on the Healthcare Inspectorate Wales website (External link).