Stroke Services

The Stroke Center at Watauga Medical Center is certified by The Joint Commission for Primary Stroke Centers as an Advanced Primary Stroke Center following a detailed, on-site re-certification review of the hospital in September 2021. The certification is based on the recommendations for primary stroke centers published by the Brain Attack Coalition and the American Stroke Association’s statements/guidelines for stroke care.

Watauga Medical Center was recognized by the American Heart Association’s Get with the Guidelines® program and awarded the Gold Plus, Target: Stroke Honor Roll, and Target: Type II Diabetes Honor Roll designations for 2020.

Our focus is to ensure the best possible outcomes for patients presenting with stroke symptoms. The Stroke Team is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to diagnose patients and provide the care needed to achieve the best possible outcomes.

Telestroke Technology

We have partnered with Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center to provide Telestroke services at Watauga Medical Center and Cannon Memorial Hospital, with 24/7 access to acute stroke experts via two-way real time video consultation. Thanks to this network, emergency room physicians are able to receive on demand consultation to help diagnose strokes, develop care plans and take action if necessary.

Learn more about Telestroke Technology at UNC Health Appalachian.

What is a stroke?

A stroke or “brain attack” occurs when a blood clot blocks an artery or a blood vessel breaks, interrupting blood flow to an area of the brain. Brain cells begin to die and brain damage occurs. Abilities controlled by that area of the brain are lost, i.e. speech, movement and memory. How a stroke patient is affected depends on where the stroke occurs in the brain and how much the brain is damaged.