Malpractice litigation in acute stroke care: Where are we now?

Acute stroke care has undergone momentous changes in recent years with the introduction of intravenous thrombolysis, mechanical thrombectomy and integrated stroke services. While these are welcome developments, they also carry unique medico-legal challenges. In 2015, a patient from Greater Manchester was awarded over £1 million in compensation after ambulance paramedics failed to admit her to a specialist unit. This paper explores the medico-legal implications of this first but overlooked thrombolysis-related claim in the United Kingdom. It is submitted that the highly time-dependent and multidisciplinary nature of acute stroke care may expose a host of healthcare personel, both medical and non-medical, to risks of legal pursuit for failing to provide appropriate care, and that available scientific evidece will likely support such claims. The situation calls for an urgent and concerted effort at implementing improvement measures at national levels. A reminder of the legal consequences of substandard acute stroke care is timely and necessary.