Johnston Health earns national recognition for efforts to improve stroke treatment
Johnston Health has received the American Heart Association’s SilverPlus Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Quality Achievement Award for its commitment to ensuring that stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines.
Stroke is the No. 5 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 health care professionals to provide the most up-to-date, research-based guidelines for treating stroke patients.
“Johnston Health is honored to be recognized by the American Heart Association for our dedication to helping patients have the best possible chance of survival after a stroke,” said Ruth Marler, chief operating officer for Johnston Health. “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.”
Hospitals receiving the Silver Plus Achievement Award have reached an aggressive goal of treating patients with 85 percent or higher compliance to core standard levels of care as outlined by the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association for one calendar year. In addition, those hospitals have demonstrated 75 percent compliance to (four out of ten heart failure quality measures or four out of seven stroke quality measures) during the 12-month period.
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, Johnston Health also provides education to patients to help them manage their health and rehabilitation once at home.
“We are pleased to recognize Johnston Health for their commitment to stroke care,” said Lee H. Schwamm, M.D., 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.”
Additionally, Johnston Health received the Association’s Target: Type 2 Honor Roll award. To qualify for this recognition, hospitals must meet quality measures developed with more than 90% of compliance for 12 consecutive months for the “Overall Diabetes Cardiovascular Initiative Composite Score.”
