WBH stroke specialist to speak on national radio tour

To kick off national Stroke Awareness Month, Western Baptist Hospital’s stroke specialist, Jacqueline Carter, M.D., will participate in a national radio tour Tuesday aimed at educating women about their risk for stroke.

The radio tour will feature more than a dozen shows in major radio markets, ranging from Boston to Omaha. It will outline findings from a recent national survey, showing that women know little about their stroke risks or symptoms.

The survey of 2,000 U.S. women was conducted March 16-April 3 for Healthy Women, in partnership with the American College of Emergency Physicians and the National Stroke Association. 

Dr. Carter, a neurologist, will speak on behalf of the National Stroke Association on these points:

-- While stroke kills twice as many women as breast cancer every year, women in the survey believed breast cancer is five times more prevalent than stroke.

-- Only 27 percent of women surveyed could name more than two of the six primary stroke symptoms, and 40 percent said they were not concerned about experiencing stroke. Stroke is the third leading killer and leading cause of nursing home admissions.

-- Stroke damage may be reduced or reversed if people seek emergency medical attention immediately. A clot-busting drug may be effective if administered within three hours of the onset of symptoms.

She also will outline the F.A.S.T. way to remember stroke symptoms:

F=Face. Try to smile. Does one side droop?

A=Arm. Raise both arms. Does one drift downward?

S=Speech. Is it slurred or odd?

T=Time. If any of those symptoms occur, call 9-1-1 immediately.

Dr. Carter will be joined on the media tour by Angela Gardner, M.D., president of the American College of Emergency Physicians; and Elizabeth Battaglino, R.N., executive director of Healthy Women, an independent health information source. The stroke survey results can be found on its Web site at HealthyWomen.org, named the top women’s health Web site by Good Housekeeping magazine.

Clips from the radio media tour will be posted later at westernbaptist.com.

Dr. Carter joined Western Baptist last year. A graduate of Northwestern University Medical School, she completed her neurology residency at Vanderbilt University and most recently served as medical director of the Columbia-St. Mary’s Stroke Centers in Milwaukee.

Dr. Carter will speak at a stroke awareness seminar luncheon May 20 at Western Baptist. For information and reservations, phone (270) 575-2895.

For more information on stroke symptoms, Western Baptist nurses answer questions 24/7 on a free Chest Pain & Stroke Hotline: 1-800-575-1911.