Implications for nurses
Clinicians need to develop effective
interventions that engage stroke
survivors and their families in
achieving excellent risk factor control
and subsequently reducing
stroke burden. For nurses, a key
challenge in secondary stroke prevention
is providing education and
supporting adherence to secondaryprevention
medications and lifestyle
changes. Nursing has played a significant
role in quality improvement
programs, such as the American
Heart and Stroke Association’s “Get
With the Guidelines–Stroke” program
to improve initiation of secondary
prevention measures in
acute-care settings.