What it means
Taught to the public and to staff so a stroke is recognized and treated quickly. F: one side of the face droops; A: one arm drifts down or is weak; S: speech is slurred or strange; T: time to call emergency services and note when symptoms began. BE FAST adds B for balance loss and E for eye or vision changes. In trauma care, FAST also names a bedside ultrasound of the abdomen (Focused Assessment with Sonography for Trauma).
For the nurse
Note the time the client was last known well: clot-dissolving treatment depends on it. Call the stroke team or emergency services at once.
Remember it
Think FAST, act fast: time lost is brain lost.
At a glance
| Also written | BE FAST, BEFAST |
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Related terms
cerebrovascular accident
A stroke: injury to part of the brain because a blood vessel in the brain is blocked or has burst.
alteplase
A clot-dissolving drug (thrombolytic) given IV; a man-made form of tissue plasminogen activator.