The American Stroke Association (ASA) will present PeaceHealth Southwest with two national awards during a ceremony May 23, 2018 at PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center. The ASA Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Silver Plus Quality Achievement Award recognizes PeaceHealth Southwest for achieving specific stroke care quality measures for 12 consecutive months. The ASA Target: Stroke Elite Honor Roll Award recognizes hospitals for successfully reducing the time between the patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment with the clot-dissolving medication tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) - the only drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat ischemic stroke.
“We are pleased to recognize PeaceHealth Southwest for their commitment to stroke care,” said Eric E. Smith, national chair of the Get With The Guidlelines Steering Committee and an associate professor of neurology at the University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada. “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.”
“Stroke is the fifth leading cause of death in our country,” said Louise Jenkins MSN, Manager of PeaceHealth Southwest’s Stroke Program. “Recognition from the American Stroke Association is a wonderful acknowledgement of the great stroke care we are providing our community. Our team has worked to increase the speed and quality of care for patients suffering stroke symptoms, along with enhancing care during the rehabilitation process. It’s great to be able to share this award with our community.”
PeaceHealth Southwest earned the two awards by meeting specific quality achievement measures for the diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients, with the goal of speeding recovery and reducing death and disability for stroke patients. The measures include the percentage of patients:
• who arrive at the hospital within 2 hours of time last known well and for whom intravenous t-PA was initiated at this hospital within 3 hours.
• with ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA) who receive antithrombotic therapy by the end of hospital day two.
• with ischemic stroke, hemorrhagic stroke, or stroke not otherwise specified who receive venous thromboembolism prophylaxis the day of or the day after hospital admission.
• with an ischemic stroke or TIA prescribed antithrombotic therapy at discharge.
• with an ischemic stroke or TIA with atrial fibrillation/flutter discharged on anticoagulation therapy.
• with ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke, or TIA with a history of smoking cigarettes, who are given smoking cessation advice or counseling during hospital stay.
• Ischemic stroke or TIA patients who are discharged on Statin Medication.
The awards will be presented by Elizabeth Peterson, ASA Regional Director, Quality & Systems Improvement.
Event Details:
When: Wednesday, May 23, 2018 at 3pm
Where: PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center – Firstenburg Tower Lobby
400 NE Mother Joseph Place, Vancouver WA
The presentation of the Silver Plus Award is open to the public. For more information about the Stroke Program at PeaceHealth Southwest, visit:
https://www.peacehealth.org/southwest/services/stroke-center
