Each of Mercy Health’s five area hospitals has received the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Quality Achievement Award for their commitment to ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines.

“Mercy Health is honored that the American Heart Association has recognized each of its hospitals for their dedication to helping patients have the best possible chance of survival after a stroke,” said Mercy Health – Cincinnati President Dave Fikse. “Get With The Guidelines-Stroke makes it easier for our teams to put proven knowledge and guidelines to work on a daily basis to improve outcomes for stroke patients.”

Specifically:

  • Anderson Hospital earned the GoldPlus award with Target: Stroke Honor Roll
  • Clermont Hospital earned the Gold award
  • Fairfield Hospital and West Hospital earned GoldPlus awards with Target: Stroke Honor Roll and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll
  • The Jewish Hospital earned the GoldPlus award with Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

To qualify for Target: Stroke Honor Roll recognition, Anderson, Fairfield and West Hospitals met quality measures developed to reduce the time between the patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment with the clot-buster tissue plasminogen activator, or tPA, the only drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat ischemic stroke.

To qualify for Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll recognition, The Jewish Hospital met quality measures developed with more than 90% of compliance for 12 consecutive months for the “Overall Diabetes Cardiovascular Initiative Composite Score.”

Stroke is the number five cause of death and a leading cause of adult disability in the U.S. On average, someone in the U.S. suffers a stroke every 40 seconds, and nearly 795,000 people suffer a new or recurrent stroke each year. Early stroke detection and treatment are key to improving survival, minimizing disability and speeding recovery times.

Get With The Guidelines-Stroke was developed to assist healthcare professionals to provide the most up-to-date, research-based guidelines for treating stroke patients.

Each year program participants apply for the award recognition by demonstrating how their organization has committed to providing quality care for stroke patients. In addition to following treatment guidelines, Mercy Health’s hospitals also provide education to patients to help them manage their health and rehabilitation once at home.

“We are pleased to recognize Mercy Health for its commitment to stroke care,” said Lee H. Schwamm, MD, national chairperson of the Quality Oversight Committee and Executive Vice Chair of Neurology, Director of Acute Stroke Services, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts. “Research has shown that hospitals adhering to clinical measures through the Get With The Guidelines quality improvement initiative can often see fewer readmissions and lower mortality rates.”