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Stroke Care - the full picture, from ambulance to rehab.

Removal of doubt: a single stroke consultant coordinating hyperacute treatment, cause-hunting, secondary prevention and rehab - instead of five clinicians and no plan.

See indicative pricing
A radiographer guides a patient onto the bed of an advanced 3 Tesla MRI scanner in a London imaging suite

Indicative pricing

What stroke care costs privately in the UK.

Indicative ranges across our partner units.

In short

Acute admission with thrombolysis: £12k–£25k, thrombectomy £28k–£55k, usually insurer-covered.

Service Indicative range
Acute stroke episode (hyperacute admission, thrombolysis) £12,000–£25,000
Mechanical thrombectomy episode £28,000–£55,000
TIA rapid-access clinic £450–£950
Stroke consultant follow-up £280–£450
Inpatient neuro-rehabilitation (per week) £4,500–£8,500
Outpatient neuro-rehab bundle (12 sessions) £1,800–£3,600
Second-opinion review £350–£650

Acute stroke and TIA care are almost always covered under private medical insurance.

The problem

The gap between the acute drug and the life afterwards.

Hyperacute stroke care in the UK is good. Prevention and rehab are patchier. We keep both attached to the same consultant.

  • Cause-hunting stops too early

    A “cryptogenic” label after a short tape misses roughly a third of occult AF. Longer monitoring changes the drug.

  • Rehab dose is under-delivered

    NICE recommends 45 minutes of each relevant therapy, 5 days a week. In practice, patients often get half that.

  • Prevention drifts

    BP creeps up, statins stop, tapes are forgotten. A dedicated prevention clinic keeps the numbers honest.

When it helps

The situations where this is the right step.

The situations we see most, plus the red flag that means urgent care rather than a routine appointment.

  • Acute FAST symptoms

    Facial droop, arm weakness, slurred speech - call 999. A private admission is arranged later; the ambulance is not.

  • Transient ischaemic attack

  • Young-adult stroke

    Under 55 with an ischaemic stroke deserves a thorough hunt - PFO, cervical artery dissection, thrombophilia, drugs, contraception.

  • Recurrent TIAs

    Two or more resolving deficits in a fortnight is a warning: prevention needs a step up, urgently.

  • Post-stroke second opinion

    Not sure the workup was thorough? A consultant stroke physician reviews the notes, imaging and prevention plan.

  • Rehab plateau

    Progress has stalled at 3–6 months. A neuro-rehab consultant can restart focused therapy - dose is often the issue.

  • AF newly diagnosed

    Even without a stroke yet, a new AF with a CHA2DS2-VASc score above 1 (men) or 2 (women) is a prevention conversation.

  • Red flag: worsening deficit in the last hour

    A stroke-in-evolution or a haemorrhagic conversion needs 999, not a booking.

Options

Approach and extent depend on the case.

What each option involves - and where each earns its place.

  • Hyperacute stroke unit

    The first 72 hours: monitored neuro-obs, swallow screen, thrombolysis and thrombectomy pathway, and continuous cardiac monitoring for occult AF.

  • Acute stroke unit

    Beyond 72 hours: focused rehab starts, cause workup completed, secondary prevention begun before discharge.

  • Comprehensive stroke centre

    Neuro-interventional radiology on site for thrombectomy, neurosurgery for haemorrhagic stroke, and 24/7 stroke consultant cover.

  • TIA rapid-access clinic

    Same-day consultant review with ECG, bloods, carotid Doppler and MRI where indicated - with prevention started that visit.

  • Neurorehabilitation ward

    Multidisciplinary inpatient rehab - physio, OT, speech, neuropsychology, orthotics - with weekly consultant-led goal setting.

  • Early supported discharge

    Home earlier with the same rehab team visiting daily. Better mood, better sleep, faster progress in the right patient.

  • Community stroke team

    Outpatient rehab, orthotics, spasticity injections and vocational support beyond the first three months.

  • Secondary prevention clinic

    Blood pressure, lipids, glucose, anticoagulation and lifestyle - reviewed every 6 to 12 months for life.

Our vetted UK network

A small, hand-picked panel of clinicians.

Consultants across London and the major UK cities. Introductions are private once we understand your case.

  • Consultant stroke physicians, hyperacute stroke unit certified

  • Access to mechanical thrombectomy 24/7

  • Multidisciplinary rehab on site (physio, OT, SLT, neuropsychology)

  • Secondary prevention clinic with cardiology and vascular MDT links

Safety and recovery

What to expect - honestly.

The things worth planning for, and the red flags that mean same-day care.

  • Time is brain

    The earlier thrombolysis or thrombectomy happens, the more brain is saved. Delay is the biggest modifiable risk.

  • Thrombolysis bleeding risk

    Roughly a 6 percent risk of symptomatic intracranial haemorrhage with alteplase. Consent conversation is honest and documented.

  • Aspiration pneumonia

    A bedside swallow screen before the first sip is standard. Dysphagia is common and dangerous in the first week.

  • Recurrent stroke

    The 90-day risk of a second event is highest without a clear cause and a matched prevention plan. Getting both right matters.

  • Blood-pressure targets

    Below 140/90 for most; below 130/80 with diabetes or small-vessel disease. Home monitoring at 6 weeks is standard.

  • Anticoagulation for AF

    A DOAC (apixaban, rivaroxaban, edoxaban, dabigatran) started 1–14 days after ischaemic stroke depending on size, per NICE.

  • Mood and cognition

    Depression and post-stroke fatigue affect roughly one in three patients. Screening at 6 weeks and 3 months is routine.

  • Driving and DVLA

    One month off driving for a Group 1 licence after stroke or TIA, longer for HGV/PSV. We put this in writing.

  • Red flags after discharge

    A new deficit, sudden severe headache, worsening speech or a fall with head injury is same-day A&E, not a routine call.

Reading your notes

Your report in four parts. Read the last one first.

Whatever the pathway, the summary keeps to the same shape.

  1. 01 Diagnosis

    Type of stroke and vascular territory

    Ischaemic vs haemorrhagic, anterior vs posterior circulation, and the artery involved (MCA, ACA, PCA, basilar, lenticulostriates).

  2. 02 Treatment

    Thrombolysis, thrombectomy or neither

    What was given, when, and the NIHSS before and after. For haemorrhage: blood-pressure control, reversal agents, and any neurosurgical input.

  3. 03 Aetiology

    Cause - TOAST classification

    Large-artery, cardioembolic, small-vessel, other determined, or undetermined. This decides antiplatelet vs anticoagulant.

  4. 04 Plan

    Prevention and rehab

    Read this first: BP, statin, antiplatelet or anticoagulant, AF workup, carotid decision, and rehab plan for the next 12 weeks.

Recognised by major UK insurers

BupaAXA HealthVitalityAvivaWPACignaHealixBupaAXA HealthVitalityAvivaWPACignaHealixBupaAXA HealthVitalityAvivaWPACignaHealix

Frequently asked

Everything we get asked about stroke care.

  • What is a hyperacute stroke unit?

    A ward set up to treat the first 72 hours of a stroke - with 24/7 stroke consultant cover, monitored neuro-observations, immediate access to CT and CT angiography, and thrombolysis and thrombectomy pathways ready to go. Every stroke should start there.

  • What is the difference between thrombolysis and thrombectomy?

    Thrombolysis is a clot-busting drug given into a vein (alteplase or tenecteplase) within 4.5 hours of onset. Thrombectomy is mechanical clot retrieval by a neuro-interventional radiologist for large-vessel occlusions - usually within 6 hours, up to 24 hours in selected imaging-eligible patients.

  • How is the cause of a stroke worked out?

    ECG and 72-hour tape for AF (sometimes an implantable loop recorder), carotid Doppler and CT angiogram for large-artery stenosis, echocardiogram with bubble study for PFO, and a hypercoagulability panel in younger patients. The cause dictates the prevention.

  • How long is rehab, honestly?

    The steepest recovery is in the first 3 months, but meaningful gains continue to 12 months and beyond. Dose matters - enough physio, OT and speech therapy, often enough. A plateau at 6 months usually means the therapy dose has dropped, not that recovery is over.

  • How much does private stroke care cost in the UK?

    A single stroke consultant follow-up runs £280–£450, a TIA rapid-access clinic £450–£950, and a full hyperacute admission with thrombolysis £12,000–£25,000. Mechanical thrombectomy is £28,000–£55,000.

  • When can I drive after a stroke?

    One month off driving for a Group 1 licence after any stroke or TIA, longer for HGV or PSV. You must inform the DVLA if any residual deficit - vision, cognition, movement - could affect safe driving. We write to you and your GP with this in the discharge summary.

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