ESO Committee Corner: Stroke Unit Committee (SUC)

The ESO Stroke Unit Committee (SUC) has established and maintains the ESO Stroke Unit/Centre certification project. The SUC was responsible for defining the initial submission and evaluation criteria. In 2016, the ESO SUC presented the ESO Stroke Unit and Stroke Centre Certification Process, based on ESO recommendations, and certification guidelines. The first applications for Certification were solicited in 2017.  Although the project is relatively young, it was accepted quickly. Already 32 stroke centers and 25 stroke units have achieved ESO Certification underlining the success of this new project.

The ESO Certification project aims to provide benchmarks for quality of stroke management, to improve the quality of patient care by contrasting local practice with international evidence based guidelines and reducing unwanted variation in clinical processes. Furthermore, the certification process provides an objective assessment of clinical excellence and strengthens community confidence in the quality and safety of care, treatment and services.

Currently the SUC`s main task is maintaining the Certification process and conducting audits. The ESO Stroke Unit Committee is proud to be supported by a number of colleagues in order to evaluate applications for ESO Stroke Unit and ESO Stroke Centre Certification. Each application is reviewed by a national auditor and two international auditors (from the Stroke Unit Committee). ESO Stroke Unit certification and ESO Stroke Centre Certification is valid for 5 years. Based on the active pipeline, we look forward to exceeding 75 ESO Certifications in Europe before the end of 2020.

In the next years, the SUC will focus on further expanding the number of certified centers, on strengthening the links between these centers, and further improve the certification process, which will include virtual and real on site visits.

In May 2020, Diederik Dippel replaced Ulrike Waje-Andreassen as Chair of the SUC. Additionally to the change of the chair, some members finished their terms as well. The SUC thanks the previous members for their efforts and their dedication and welcomes the new members cordially.