What this indicator shows
TS3 describes how closely the distribution of thrombectomy referrals across a system matches the distribution of stroke admissions within that system. It focuses on whether patients admitted to referring (spoke) hospitals have access to thrombectomy that is proportionate to the number of strokes admitted at those hospitals.
This indicator provides a system-level view of equity of access between hub and spoke hospitals.
Included
- All thrombectomy procedures performed within the network.
- All stroke admissions to hub and referring hospitals within the network.
Excluded / not applicable
- Networks with only direct admissions do not receive points for this indicator.
- Admissions and procedures outside the network.
How TS3 is defined
TS3 is calculated by comparing:
- the proportion of thrombectomies that originate from spoke hospitals, and
- the proportion of stroke admissions that occur at spoke hospitals.
- Numerator
The proportion of thrombectomies that originate from spoke hospitals:
(Number of spoke MTs / total system MTs) - Denominator
The proportion of stroke admissions that occur at spoke hospitals:
(Number of spoke admissions / total system stroke admissions)
The result is expressed as a ratio.
How to interpret this indicator
- Higher values indicate less variation, meaning that access to thrombectomy for patients admitted to spoke hospitals is more closely aligned with overall admission patterns.
- Lower values indicate greater variation, suggesting that patients admitted to spokes may be under-represented among thrombectomy referrals.
- TS3 helps identify potential system-level access imbalance, rather than performance at individual hospitals.
Important considerations
- Networks with only direct admissions (and no transferring spoke hospitals) do not receive points for this indicator.
- Differences in TS3 may reflect pathway design, geography, case mix, or referral practices.
- This indicator should be interpreted alongside other access and timeliness measures within the Thrombectomy System Score.