FAST (stroke) FAST (stroke) FAST is an acronym used as a mnemonic to help detect and enhance responsiveness to the needs of a person having a stroke. The acronym stands for Facial drooping, Arm weakness, Speech difficulties and Time to call emergency services. The FAST was developed in the UK in 1998 by a group of stroke physicians, ambulance personnel, and an emergency department physician and was designed to be an integral part of a training package for ambulance staff. The FAST was created to expedite administration of intravenous tissue plasminogen activator to patients within 3 hours of acute stroke symptom onset.
Emergency medical services in Portugal medical services around the world. In Portugal, the free of charge phone number for emergency medical service is the Europe wide 112 (emergency telephone number). When someone dials "1-1-2", the call is directed to a PSP Police dispatch center. The PSP dispatch center redirects the call accordingly for the type of emergency to the appropriate emergency services. In continental Portugal medical emergency calls are directed to one of INEM's urgent patient guidance centers () or CODU's. There are four regional CODU's; Lisbon, Porto, Coimbra and Faro. Additionally, there is the CODU-Mar that responds to maritime medical emergencies. Under the coordination