Formation of VSS
The American Heart Association and American Stroke Association (AHA/ASA) work national and regionally to identify and evaluate strategies for improving stroke care in the United States. In 2005, the ASA convened a multidisciplinary group, the “Task Force on the Development of Stroke Systems.” Through the work of this group, AHA/ASA recognized the potential value of having each state follow a newly emerging conceptual framework for stroke care being crafted by this expert committee. At that time, the AHA/ASA suggested that each state convene a leadership team and begin organizing groups of volunteers and stakeholder organizations to work on customizing a model for their respective states–using a systems-approach and the components of a model stroke system prescribed by the Task Force.
Stroke stakeholders across the Commonwealth–including the Department of Health, healthcare provider associations, Office of Emergency Medical Service, quality-improvement organizations and hospital associations–enthusiastically responded to the call to action and began organizing a statewide network. This movement resulted in the formation of the Virginia Stroke Systems (VSS) collaborative and a customized stroke work plan for Virginia.