The RCSLT stroke audit tool

This audit has been produced by representatives of the RCSLT, having been developed and approved by the Intercollegiate Working Party for Stroke, Royal College of Physicians.

The National Sentinel Stroke Audit (NSSA) provides an audit of stroke services and case profiles. It is intended that this profession-specific audit can be used alongside the NSSA to provide a more detailed description of the speech and language therapy contribution to stroke care.

It is based on the evidence demonstrated through the National Clinical Guidelines for Stroke, but also supported by work related to speech and language therapy care more generally.

The audit relates to speech and language therapy care delivered in secondary care settings, including both acute and rehabilitation services. Profession-specific stroke audits are also available for occupational therapy, physiotherapy, dietetics and nursing.

The aims of the stroke audit are to :

• delineate the organisational structures and processes related to speech and language therapy care of people within stroke services in the UK
• describe the pattern of speech and language therapy care activities and interventions delivered to individual stroke patients within stroke services in the UK

The RCSLT has approved two tools to audit your stroke service. It is up to your own discretion which you decide to use. The longer version will provide your speech and language therapy service with more useful information, however, it will take longer to complete.

The shorter tool
The multidisciplinary team organisational audit accompanies the shorter version clinical audit, for which there are guidance notes for the clinical part. This organisational audit should be completed by a team and the clinical audit just by SLT. The purpose of this process is to encourage stroke teams to take a multidisciplinary focus to audit and complete them together.

The longer tool
The longer version has an organisational audit with the clinical audit in one document. There are guidance notes for the organisational and clinical audit, longer version. You only need these two documents. This version is for services who only want to audit their speech and language therapy service and are not undertaking a multidisciplinary audit as part of a stroke team.


Profession specific audit of stroke 2006: a multidisciplinary pilot study

SLT profession specific audit of stroke care: longer tool

SLT profession specific audit of stroke care: shorter tool

Guidance notes for the longer tool

Guidance notes for the shorter tool

Profession specific stroke audit: multidisciplinary team organisational

For more information contact Claire Moser