Who We Are

In 2009, the CEOs of the North Texas HCA hospitals reached out to Vallabh Janardhan, MD to assist them in developing a national center of excellence – the Texas Stroke Institute. They shared the vision of working together as a multi-hospital collaborative to increase stroke treatment rates and to bring comprehensive stroke therapy to the Dallas/Ft. Worth region and beyond.

Development of infrastructure, recruitment of nationally recognized physicians, and a sustainable marketing approach require facilities to work together under one strategic business plan.

	Vallabh Janardhan, MD Director of the Texas Stroke Institute Director of the Comprehensive Stroke Program and Neuro-interventional Services, HCA North Texas Division Dr. Janardhan joined HCA North Texas from the University of Minnesota Medical Center, where he served as Medical Director for Stroke and Interventional Neuroradiology. He completed his Vascular Fellowship at Harvard Medical School and his Interventional Neuroradiology Fellowship at Cornell and Columbia Universities. Dr. Janardhan’s areas of expertise include interventional neuroradiology, cutting edge therapies for stroke treatment, and neuro critical care. He is a founding member of the Society of Vascular and Interventional Neurology and currently serves on their Board of Directors.
	Madhu Vijayappa, MD Director of Stroke Services, The Medical Center of Plano Dr. Vijayappa joined HCA North Texas after completing his neurology training at the University of Illinois. He has had fellowship training at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School in neuro-sonology where he worked closely with the stroke service, the neuro critical care team and the telestroke initiative. His areas of expertise include stroke, neuro critical care and the use of transcranial doppler in acute ischemic stroke/cerebral vasospasm. Dr. Vijayappa has joined HCA North Texas for further training in Endovascular Surgical Neuroradiology (Interventional Neurology).
	Patricia Santos, RN, BSN, CNRN Vice President of Neurosciences, HCA North Texas Patricia Santos joined HCA in 2008 to assist in strategic planning for neurosciences. She is a graduate of the University of Colorado. In addition to her neuroscience nursing experience, she has served in several organizations as an entrepreneur, leader, and patient advocate for acute stroke care. Ms Santos areas of expertise include neuro critical care, stroke, and neuroscience program growth/development. Ms. Santos served as Vice President of the Colorado Stroke Advisory Board where she helped build one of the country’s largest voluntary state stroke registries.
	Debbie Estes, RN, BSN Director of Stroke and Neurovascular Services, HCA North Texas Debbie Estes, RN, BSN is a graduate of Texas A & M at Texarkana. She has over thirty four years of nursing experience. Ms. Estes has successfully led three large urban healthcare facilities toward Joint Commission Primary Stroke Center certification, all within six months from start to completion. Her areas of expertise include stroke education, stroke program development/implementation, and quality improvement. Ms. Estes is recognized nationally for her efforts in changing processes to treat acute stroke patients.

The Texas Stroke Institute is a collaborative initiative that includes eleven North Texas HCA hospitals. Our goal is to develop an effective and resource-efficient plan to reduce the morbidity, mortality and economic burden of stroke in the region. Incorporating medical education and participating in research will establish us as a National Center of Excellence in Stroke.