Abstract:Objective To investigate the role of Plan-Do-Check-Action (PDCA) cycle in optimizing hospital procedures for patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) and its influence on the door-to-needle time (DNT) of these patients.Methods A total of 167 AIS patients undergoing intravenous thrombolysis in our hospital from June 2018 to December 2019 were enrolled. Patientsl treated from June 2018 to April 2019 (65 cases) without the application of PDCA cycle were included in control group, while those treated from May 2019 to December 2019 (102 cases) managed with PDCA cycle for preexisting problems were included in test group. We analyzed the DNT and the time spent on other clinical procedures in the two groups.Results There was no difference in gender and age composition between the two groups (P > 0.05). The National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score was lower in the test group than that in the control group (P < 0.05). The onset-to-door time was longer in the test group compared with the control group (P < 0.05). The DNT and time spent on other clinical procedures were all shorter in the test group than those in the control group (P < 0.05). There were 15 cases (23.1%) with DNT≤ 60 min in the control group, while 76 cases (74.5%) with DNT ≤ 60 min in the test group. The proportion of patients with a reduction in NIHSS score ≥ 4 or NIHSS score = 0 after intravenous thrombolysis was 62.7% (64 cases) in the test group, which was higher than 32.3% (21 cases) in the control group.Conclusions The PDCA cycle can effectively improve the in-hospital process of intravenous thrombolysis, and significantly shorten DNT and the time of other key steps in the process.