The care of patients with stroke, which ranks third in the mortality statistics with a 40% mortality rate, represents a core competency of a maximum care hospital. Increasingly, clinics are moving towards representing core competencies in standardized treatment pathways. A Clinical Pathway for "Stroke" begins with the pre-hospital emergency medical care of a patient. The task of emergency physicians is to establish the suspected diagnosis of "stroke," stabilize impaired vital functions, and promptly assign the patient to an appropriate clinic. This initial phase in the care of a stroke patient can be depicted and optimized through a standard operating procedure (SOP).