Coverdell Stroke Program: Part of the Wisconsin Chronic Disease Prevention Program

In the United States, approximately 1 in 21 adult deaths are due to stroke.

It is estimated that 80% of all strokes are preventable.

Source: https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/epub/10.1161/CIR.0000000000001123

Approximately 1 in 2 stroke patients in Wisconsin arrived at the hospital by Emergency Medical Service (EMS) in 2024. When a stroke occurs parts of the brain can be damaged and die within minutes. Calling 911 can result in more timely care on the way to reduce this damage.

Source: Get With the Guidelines, 2025.

The Wisconsin Chronic Disease Prevention Program (CDPP) works with hospitals, emergency medical services (EMS), community-based and professional organizations across the state to support a healthier Wisconsin by improving the community awareness and the quality of stroke care.

The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) has funded stroke quality improvement initiatives since 2001, providing competitive grants to state health departments to support the development of stroke systems of care. This funding is called the Paul Coverdell National Acute Stroke Prevention Program (Coverdell), named after Georgia Senator Paul Coverdell who suffered and died of a stroke while serving in Congress.

In 2024, Wisconsin CDPP was one of 13 states to receive funding in the latest iteration of the Coverdell grant program, extending Wisconsin’s ongoing participation in Coverdell since 2012. CDPP manages several projects to enhance coordinated systems of care, promote clinical best practices, and support patient self-care and health literacy. Wisconsin has been a Coverdell state since 2012.

The goals of Wisconsin’s stroke program are to:

• Increase public awareness of stroke treatment and prevention
• Track, monitor, and assess clinical and social services and support needs measures and referrals across the stroke continuum of care for those who have experienced a stroke, those at the highest risk of stroke due to undiagnosed or uncontrolled hypertension, and to identify health care disparities
• Promote the implementation of a team-based care approach across the stroke continuum of care for those who have experienced a stroke and those at the highest risk of stroke, focusing on hypertension prevention, detection, control, and management through the mitigation of barriers to social services and support needs to improve outcomes
• Link individuals to community resources and clinical services to support bidirectional referrals, self-management, and lifestyle changes for those who have experienced a stroke and those at the highest risk of stroke and to mitigate barriers to social services and support needs to improve outcomes
   

The objectives of the program are:

• Public Awareness – Promote messaging for stroke prevention, signs and symptoms, and the importance of calling 911.
• Partnerships – Increase and maintain multi-disciplinary partnerships. These include Stroke Coordinators of Wisconsin, the EMS Board Physician Advisory Committee, community-based organizations, and others. These partnerships guide the Wisconsin Coverdell Stroke Program and enhance other statewide stroke efforts.
• Recruitment – Recruit and engage EMS, hospital systems, and community partners in quality improvement.
• Data Infrastructure – Implement an integrated data management system. It will measure, track, and assess the quality of care.
• Data Use – Increase the reliability and use of stroke data across transitions of care. This includes EMS to hospital, hospital to home, and primary care to community services.
• Quality Improvement – Coordinate efforts to improve quality of stroke care.
• Sustainability – Develop a plan and/or methods to support ongoing coordinated stroke care systems.