Hospital CEO Sees the Impact of Telestroke Firsthand

This is a great story for all of my hospital administrator friends who are still trying to understand the value of telemedicine and telestroke services.

While attending a meeting for the Colorado Hospital Association in Vail, CO, Mr. Brad Cochenennet, CEO of Pagosa Springs Medical Center, began to experience stroke-like symptoms. Mr. Cochenennet was rushed to Vail Valley Medical Center, a 58-bed facility in the heart of the Rocky Mountains. Once there, the attending physicians determined that Mr. Cochennet required an immediate examination from an expert neurologist. At this point, Dr. Chris Fanale, a neurologist at Swedish Medical Center in Englewood, “beamed in” to conduct a stroke assessment of Mr. Cochenennet’s condition via an RP-Lite.

Coincidentally, the doctor and patient had met before under very different circumstances. Dr. Fanale and Mr. Cochennet had previously worked together to bring a telemedicine system to Pagosa Springs Medical Center. Mr. Cochennet now has firsthand experience of how telestrok systems can have a crucial impact in saving lives. Thankfully, Mr. Cochennet made a speedy recovery and was shortly released from the hospital.

View the complete NBC 9 News video coverage of the story and learn more about telestroke at the telestroke Initiative site.