Acute Stroke Unit

How to find us

The Acute Stroke Unit is located in the William Stokes Unit.  

The William Stokes Unit which is located on the Ground floor of Tallaght University Hospital. When you arrive at the main entrance of the Hospital, turn left at the lifts in the main atrium. Walk to the very end of the corridor and turn left. The door to enter the unit is on your right hand side.

From Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm visitors can access the units through the Charlie O’Toole Day Unit entrance.

Visiting Hours

Daily visiting hours in the Hospital are from: 2pm - 4pm and from 6:30pm - 8:30pm

Visitors are regarded as an important part of the patient's day and are very welcome.  The welfare of the patient must, however, always be taken into consideration. If the patient is likely to become unduly upset or tired, certain visiting restrictions may be imposed. Patients need adequate rest to help the healing process.

Visiting Guidelines

Visitors are regarded as an important part of the patient's day and are very welcome. Please note Patient safety is our number one priority.

We have strict policies on infection prevention & control which apply to everyone: staff, patients and visitors. We would ask all visitors observe the following: 

• Only two visitors permitted to visit at any one time
• The Hospital is a no smoking hospital this includes the use of electronic smoking devices
• To avoid bringing infection into the ward, visitors are asked not to visit if they have a cold, flu or infections
• If you are bringing food into patients, please check with the staff in charge - this is to decrease the risk of food contamination and patients may also be on a restricted diet
• Use visitor toilets rather than patient toilets. This reduces the risk of cross-infection
• Please dispose of any litter properly, help us to keep our communal areas and entrances clean.
• Please note that for infection control reasons flowers or plants are not permitted
• Please note that visiting during mealtimes is forbidden. This enables patients’ to eat and enjoy their meals uninterrupted, an essential requirement for good nutrition so our patients can recover more quickly. The only exception to this is if you are a carer providing assistance with a patient’s mealtime
• Never bring alcohol or drugs to patients

If you see this symbol when visiting please be aware of its importance. This spiral symbol means that a patient is imminently dying or has died. We would ask all visitors to be respectful and avoid mobile phone use and to be prepared to meet people who are grieving during your time on the ward.

Pastoral Care

Pastoral Care Services are available for patients. Nursing Staff will arrange for a member of the Pastoral Care Team to visit a patient if required.

Description of Acute Stroke Unit

The Stroke Service at TUH arose from the first ever acute stroke service in the Republic of Ireland set up in the Meath hospital in 1996 within the department of Age-Related Health Care. The service consists of a dedicated multidisciplinary team which adopts a collaborative approach to stroke care. 

The Stroke Service includes the core elements required to deliver quality stroke care such as, an Acute Stroke Unit, a 24 hour thrombolysis / thrombectomy service, access to specialist physicians and dedicated multidisciplinary team, a Rapid Access Stroke Prevention Clinic and access to diagnostics and radiology.

The William Stokes Unit specialises in the care of the Older person and their rehabilitation, and strives to facilitate the individual to achieve their maximum potential- Physically, socially, psychologically and spiritually.

We aim for patients to work towards independence in their life style and home environment.  The Unit has 26 beds, of which there are eight beds in the Acute Stroke Unit (ASU). Patients who have had a stroke are closely monitored and treated in the ASU during the acute phase of stroke. Patients are then transferred to William Stokes Unit for further rehabilitation.

Our Team

In order to achieve the goal for the patients admitted in this unit, we work as a multi-disciplinary team consisting of doctors, nurses, health care assistants, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech & language therapists, clinical nutritionists, medical social workers and clinical psychologist.

Information on Stroke

In accordance with the ‘Irish Heart Foundation National Clinical Guidelines and Recommendations for the Care of People with Stroke and Transient Ischaemic Attack, Persons at risk of a stroke and those who have had a stroke should be assessed for and given information on risk factors, lifestyle management issues and should be counselled on possible strategies to modify their lifestyle and risk factors. Our Stroke Clinical Nurse Specialists are Nicola Cogan and Suzanne Greene and they can be contacted on (01) 414 3219.

Further Information and helpful links

In April 2023 a new guide to help children where someone close to them has had a stroke was launched. The booklet, CHATS: (Children Helped by Adults to Talk about Stroke) was developed by Dr. Áine Connolly, Principal Clinical Psychologist, and Ms. Wendy Moynan, Social Work Team Leader of TUH. The authors have years of experience helping patients, and families with children to navigate the difficult adjustment after a stroke in our hospital. Previous international studies have highlighted that talking to children and young people about a loved one’s illness is important for their mental health. However, research is also clear that adults find sharing a diagnosis with children emotionally challenging.

Staff in the stroke service in TUH recognised that there was a gap in terms of the provision of accessible, good-quality information to help adults to talk to children after such a traumatic event. You can read the booklet by clicking on this link.

For queries and feedback about the booklet email  -  chats@tuh.ie

To watch a short animated video about CHATS click here - bit.ly/3GRelu4

A patients guide to guide to the stroke services in Tallaght University Hospital is available at this link.