Philadelphia-based Jefferson Health partnered with Bensalem (Pa.) Emergency Medical Services to acquire a $1.2 million mobile ambulance that is equipped with technology to help diagnose and treat stroke more quickly, Courier Times reports.
The mobile stroke unit features a CT scanner and telemedicine technology, which will allow medical personnel to administer drugs that help treat blood clots and prevent brain damage, a Jefferson Health spokesperson told the publication.
The mobile unit is "a game changer ... Having a vehicle that's equipped to deliver immediate treatment will make a world of difference to our patients in this community," said Gerald Wydro, emergency medicine chair at Langhorne, Pa.-based Jefferson Bucks Hospital.
Jefferson Health's Vickie and Jack Farber Institute for Neuroscience covered the cost of the mobile unit. The health system will also pay the estimated $1 million to operate it.