Ontario Stroke Registry

In 2001, the Registry of the Canadian Stroke Network (RCSN) was first established with a Canadian Stroke Network research grant and funds from the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care. In the first two phases of the RCSN, data were collected from 21 hospital across Canada. This initiative was instrumental in understanding quality of stroke care and patient outcomes in Canada. In 2003, data collection primarily focused on patients in Ontario and from one site in Nova Scotia.

In 2004, the RCSN became a prescribed registry under Ontario’s Personal Health Information Protection Act. This designation permitted the RCSN to collect data without patient consent. On November 1, 2011, ownership of the RCSN was transferred from the Canadian Stroke Network to ICES in partnership with the Ontario Stroke Network. To reflect these changes in governance, the name was changed to the Ontario Stroke Registry (OSR).

The OSR has been used for monitoring and reporting on the quality of stroke care in Ontario through the Ontario Stroke Network and the Stroke Quality-Based Procedures of the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care. In addition, the OSR serves as a rich clinical database for investigator-initiated research projects. The OSR was funded by the Canadian Stroke Network, Ontario Stroke Network and Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care until 2014/15.

In 2017, the Cardiac Care Network of Ontario and the Ontario Stroke Network merged to become CorHealth Ontario, with an expanded mandate spanning cardiac, stroke and vascular services through the entire course of care. CorHealth Ontario provides a strategic understanding of the care needs of both patients and providers, as the basis for clinical quality improvement, provincial planning, resource allocation and measurement performance of quality and outcomes.

In 2020, with funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, ICES scientists initiated a new OSR data collection cycle for years 2019/20 and 2022/23 with a focus on evaluating the delivery of endovascular thrombectomy across Ontario.

For any questions related to the OSR, please get in touch with us.