Each Mercy Health hospital that treats stroke patients has received the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Quality Achievement Award. The awards acknowledge the hospitals’ commitment to ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines. 

“Mercy Health’s stroke care teams are dedicated to ensuring that all stroke patients have access to best practices and life-saving care. We are honored that the American Heart Association recognized our stroke care teams for their work in helping patients have the best possible chance of survival after a stroke,” said Mercy Health – Cincinnati Chief Operating Officer Sean Dardeau. “Get With The Guidelines makes it easier for our teams to put proven knowledge and guidelines to work on a daily basis, which studies show can help patients recover better. The end goal is to ensure more people can experience longer, healthier lives.”

Specifically:

  • Fairfield Hospital earned the Gold Plus award with Target: Stroke Elite Honor Roll and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll
  • Anderson Hospital earned the Gold Plus award with Target: Stroke Honor Roll and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll
  • The Jewish Hospital earned the Gold Plus award with Advanced Therapy honors
  • West Hospital earned the Gold Plus award with Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

To qualify for Target: Stroke Honor Roll recognitions, Anderson Hospital and Fairfield Hospital met specific criteria that reduce the time between an eligible patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment with the clot-buster alteplase.  

The Jewish Hospital received the American Heart Association’s Target: Stroke Honor Roll Advanced Therapy award by meeting specific criteria that reduce the time between an eligible patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment to remove the clot causing the stroke.

The AHA placed Anderson Hospital, Fairfield Hospital and West Hospital on the Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll for their efforts to ensure patients with Type 2 diabetes, who might be at higher risk for complications, receive the most up-to-date, evidence-based care when hospitalized due to stroke.

“We are incredibly pleased to recognize Mercy Health for its commitment to caring for patients with stroke,” said Steven Messe, MD, chairperson of the Stroke System of Care Advisory Group. “Participation in Get With The Guidelines is associated with improved patient outcomes, fewer readmissions and lower mortality rates – a win for health care systems, families and communities.”

Stroke is the fifth-leading cause of death and a leading cause of disability in the U.S. A stroke occurs when a blood vessel that carries oxygen and nutrients to the brain is either blocked by a clot or bursts. When that happens, part of the brain cannot get the blood and oxygen it needs, so brain cells die. Early stroke detection and treatment are key to improving survival, minimizing disability and accelerating recovery times.

Get With The Guidelines puts the expertise of the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association to work for hospitals nationwide, helping ensure patient care is aligned with the latest research- and evidence-based guidelines. Get With The Guidelines – Stroke is an in-hospital program for improving stroke care by promoting consistent adherence to these guidelines, which can minimize the long-term effects of a stroke and even prevent death.

Each year, program participants qualify for the award by demonstrating how their organization has committed to providing quality care for stroke patients. In addition to following treatment guidelines, Get With The Guidelines participants also educate patients to help them manage their health and recovery at home.