Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland (CHSS), one of the country’s largest health charities, is calling on the Scottish Government to put greater emphasis on essential stroke care over the course of this administration.
Public Health Scotland released their 2025 Scottish Stroke Improvement Programme this week, showing the country has failed to reach its target of 80% of patients receiving an inpatient bundle for the eighth straight year.
Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland (CHSS), one of the country’s largest health charities, is calling on the Scottish Government to put greater emphasis on essential stroke care over the course of this administration.
The inpatient bundle, which includes aspirin, access to a stroke unit, brain imaging and swallow screening, gives patients the best chance of survival in the critical hours after a stroke.
Across Scotland, 56.7% of 11,048 stroke patients received the care set by national standards.
Stroke remains one of the biggest causes of long-term adult disability in Scotland.
In the Lothians, 57.6% of the region’s patients received the bundle, an increase of just 1.1% compared with 2024. Whilst CHSS welcomes this marginal improvement, the charity highlights that performance remains short of the Scottish Government’s 80% target.
The total number of confirmed strokes in the region increased from 1,447 in 2024 to 1,462 in 2025, an increase of 15.
Joanne Graham, Director of Service Delivery at CHSS, said: “While there has been a small improvement in stroke bundle performance across Lothian, progress remains limited and performance continues to fall well short of the Scottish Government’s target.
“More than 1,400 people experienced a stroke in Lothian last year, highlighting the scale of the challenge.
“CHSS is already helping stroke survivors across Lothian through our community healthcare model and supported self-management programmes.
“We look forward to continuing to build on our close local work with NHS Lothian, alongside the Scottish Government, so this support reaches everyone who needs it.”
Don’t miss the latest news from the West Lothian Courier. Sign up to our free newsletter
You must be logged in to post a comment Login