History

The Minnesota Stroke Partnership (MSP) was formed in September 2005. The original core of the MSP was simply a committee of individuals from a variety of organizations. This original group was named the Minnesota Stroke Committee. The group met quarterly in 2005-2006 to plan and prioritize stroke prevention areas and populations that needed to be addressed.

The group determined that the areas of emergency medical services (EMS) and emergency departments (EDs) were a high priority - and had high potential for achieving short-term successes. Thus, a first task force was formed to address EMS and stroke. As more individuals were recruited for this task force, it became clear that this statewide effort to collaboratively address stroke was growing to more than simply a "committee." The group agreed in June 2006 to rename itself as the Steering Committee of the Minnesota Stroke Partnership.

The Minnesota Stroke Partnership Today

The Minnesota Stroke Partnership is comprised of individuals who are interested in reducing the burden of stroke in Minnesota. A Steering Committee oversees collaborative projects and acts as an advisory group to the Minnesota Department of Health on stroke issues. The Steering Committee meets quarterly to discuss the "big picture" and agree on the general content and direction for statewide initiatives.

Task forces are formed to address specific areas of interest as determined by the Steering Committee. These areas currently include emergency medical services and emergency departments. Future task forces will be formed to concentrate on implementing projects in the areas of public education and rehabilitation issues.

Committees are also part of the Minnesota Stroke Partnership infrastructure. Our current plan is to form committees to focus on operations and infrastructure, membership and growth, and epidemiology and surveillance.

Finally, the Partnership includes individuals who may not be actively involved in a committee or task force, but are involved in stroke prevention, treatment, or rehabilitation in various ways. These people are opinion leaders, change agents, and stroke champions in their communities and organizations. We connect with all members of the Partnership through the Minnesota Stroke Partnership Bulletin, a monthly email newsletter which updates everyone on projects, stroke events, and stroke in the news.

Current Efforts

Since January 2007, the EMS Stroke Task Force has been planning a train-the-trainer program for EMS educators from all eight EMS regions in Minnesota. The idea is to train the educators, so they can go back to their local areas to train providers on the most updated stroke issues.

The Emergency Department Stroke Task Force met for the first time in January 2007. This group is comprised of ED staff from around the state interested in improving acute care in Minnesota emergency departments. The task force is going to be reconvening later this year in order to develop a statewide consensus protocol for stroke care in emergency departments.

For more information, please contact James Peacock, PhD, MPH at (651) 201-5405 or james.peacock@health.state.mn.us.