MedStar Health Training Helps Police Recognize Stroke Victims Faster, Closing Critical Gap in Emergency Response and Life-Saving Care

Nurse-led initiative shows 100% improvement in officers’ ability to identify stroke symptoms.

BALTIMORE – A pilot initiative led by MedStar Health nurses has shown that targeted training for police officers can dramatically improve their ability to recognize the signs of stroke, reducing the time between encountering a stroke victim and getting them the fast, appropriate medical care they need.

Police are often the first to respond to emergencies where stroke symptoms can easily be mistaken for other conditions such as intoxication, Parkinson’s disease, urinary tract infections, or low blood sugar. Those misinterpretations, while understandable, can delay life-saving treatment and lead to catastrophic outcomes.

To address this, a clinical team from the Comprehensive Stroke Center at MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center designed an education program for Baltimore County Police Department’s Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team. Over two weeks, 31 officers participated in 15–20 minute “huddle” trainings led by nurses specializing in emergency medicine and neurology.

The training sessions focused on the BEFAST mnemonic: balance, eyes, face, arm, speech and time, a simple, evidence-based tool that helps first responders quickly recognize potential strokes.

Click to enlarge graphic

The clinical team surveyed the officers on their knowledge of stroke symptoms and the appropriate emergency response before and after the training. The results were analyzed and published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Radiology Nursing:

• Officers’ accuracy in identifying each BEFAST symptom rose to 100% after training, up from as low as 35% before.
• Officers reported greater confidence in recognizing and responding to potential stroke cases.
• The improvements were statistically significant (p < .05) across all key knowledge measures.

“Every minute matters when someone is having a stroke,” said Nicole Goff, MSN, RN, a stroke navigator at the Comprehensive Stroke Center at MedStar Franklin Square, and one of the investigators on the study. “Police are often the first to encounter a person in distress, at a traffic stop, in a public place, or responding to a call. When stroke is mistaken for intoxication or another condition, treatment can be delayed with devastating consequences. This training gives officers the tools to recognize a medical emergency and get help quickly.”

The initiative, grounded in behavioral change frameworks, the Health Belief Model and the Exploration, Preparation, Implementation, and Sustainment (EPIS) model, demonstrated that even brief, targeted training sessions can change real-world response behavior.

“By bridging the gap between the moment police encounter a stroke victim and when that person reaches medical care, we can improve outcomes and save lives,” said Ariel Woodward, MBA, BSN, director of nursing programs. “These officers now have a demonstrated knowledge and confidence to recognize the signs and act fast.”

Within weeks after training, officers responded to a stroke victim in a motor vehicle collision and responded quickly to get medical treatment started for the best possible result.

The training raises awareness of the fine line between medical and behavioral presentations in the field. Nationally, there have been documented cases where stroke victims were mistakenly arrested for driving under the influence, situations that underscore the importance of equipping first responders with simple, practical recognition tools.

Following the success of the pilot, MedStar Health expanded the program to offer training to first responder groups, including firefighters and EMTs, in other jurisdictions.

“Early stroke recognition isn’t just a hospital issue, it’s a community issue,” added Goff.  “When first responders and healthcare professionals work together, we strengthen the entire chain of survival for stroke patients.”

Click here for more information about the Comprehensive Stroke Center at MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center.

Review the full report of the study in the Journal of Nursing Radiology here.