Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn Wednesday unveiled two new state-of-the-art ambulances that will travel across the region to help residents experiencing a stroke.
During a news conference, Hahn alongside UCLA Health highlighted the county's Mobile Stroke Unit program. Since its inception in 2017, physicians travel on a special-equipped ambulance -- built with a mobile CT scanner, point- of-care lab tests, telehealth connection with a vascular neurologist and therapies -- to rapidly treat residents calling for help.
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These physicians on the unit can administer clot-busting drugs to patients before they get to an emergency room.
"After a stroke, every minute counts," Hahn said in a statement. She is a long-time advocate for the program. "The faster we can get patients the treatment they need, the better their chances of survival and of avoiding long-term brain damage."
UCLA has operated one ambulance for the program, and with two more, there will be a total of three.
"With three Mobile Stroke Units now serving L.A. County, we're giving more residents a fighting chance to recover fully after a stroke and live healthy lives," Hahn added.
According to county officials, the program has responded to more than 2,000 calls and treated more than 360 patients. With new ambulances available, the program will expand to cover 33 communities on the Westside, South Bay, Long Beach and Gateway Cities. Beginning in August, one of these ambulances will serve the San Fernando Valley, which has been identified as one of the major geographic areas with high incidents of stroke.
"The expansion of our L.A. County Mobile Stroke Unit fleet represents a major leap forward in equitable pre-hospital stroke care," said Dr. May Nour with UCLA Health. "By bringing advanced imaging and treatment directly to patients in the field, we're shortening the time to diagnosis and intervention, when every minute matters."
"This isn't just about technology; it's about delivering lifesaving care where and when it is needed most," Nour added.
For every minute that passes following a stroke, 2 million brain cells die, county officials explained. In 2021, the New England Journal of Medicine published a study that found treatment in a mobile stroke ambulance leads to better outcomes for patients.
Hahn has pushed for the program, inspired by her late father and former Supervisor Kenneth Hahn, who started the nation's first paramedic program, which began as a way to treat heart attack patients in the field before they arrived at a hospital.
Hahn explained this issue was also close to home, adding that her father later suffered a stroke and was partially paralyzed for the rest of his life.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Preventions, there are nearly 800,000 people nationwide who experience a stroke each year, or one every 40 seconds. Approximately 87% of these health incidents are known as ischemic strokes, in which bloodflow to the brain is blocked by a clogged artery or blood clot. The remainder are hemorrhagic strokes, which occur when a blood vessel in the brain ruptures and bleeds.
Hahn's office said the mobile stroke ambulances are capable of treating both types of strokes.
The UCLA Mobile Stroke Unit acquired the two new ambulances with funds from philanthropic donations.
The Brett Torino Foundation donated $6 million for a second ambulance, which will serve the San Fernando Valley. Heidi and Larry Canarelli of Las Vegas donated an additional $6 million for UCLA to acquire the third ambulance, which will be stationed in Westwood.
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