The Stroke Team

Teamwork is a big part of stroke recovery. With a major disease like this occurring to a person, a team of doctors helps the patient recover and rehabilitate into a normal life. So what doctors are making up this team?

Neurologist:

A physician who specializes in the science of the nerves and the nervous system, especially of diseases affecting them.

Neurosurgeon:

A surgeon who operates on the brain and any surrounding tissue that was damaged during a stroke.

General Physician:

A physician who treats acute and chronic illnesses and provides preventative care and health education to patients.

Physical Therapist:

A therapist that specializes in the treatment or management of physical disability, malfunction, or pain by exercise, massage, or hydrotherapy.  

Occupational Therapist:

A therapist that specializes in the treatment or management of developing, recovering, and maintaining daily living and working skills. These therapists attend to helping the patient relearn how to  regain their independence in grooming, dressing, hygiene, and toileting.  
 

Speech Therapist:

A therapist that specializes in the treatment or management of communication problems and swallowing complications.

Each of these people is crucial in the treatment plan of the patient who suffered the stroke. Throughout the patients recovery, each of these people is in constant contact with each other about how the patient does with them. The physical therapist tells the neurologist how the patients is rehabilitating, who tells the rest of the team how the patient is doing with that specific person. Each person is equally important in the recovery and rehabilitation of the patient.
 

References:

http://www.emoryhealthcare.org/stroke/staff.html - Stroke Physician Team - January 2015 - Emory Healthcare.

http://www.webmd.com/stroke/guide/stroke-treatment-care - Stroke: Treatment and Care - November 2013 - WebMD.