Good Samaritan Receives Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award

 

 

 

American Heart Association Award recognizes Good Samaritan’s commitment to quality stroke care.

According to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, stroke is the No. 5 cause of death and a leading cause of adult disability in the United States. 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.

Because of its excellent outcomes related to stroke care, Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center has received the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award. The award recognizes the hospital’s commitment to ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines based on the latest scientific evidence.

Good Samaritan earned this prestigious award by meeting specific quality achievement measures for the diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients at a set level for a designated period. These measures include evaluation of the proper use of medications and other stroke treatments aligned with the most up-to-date, evidence-based guidelines with the goal of speeding recovery and reducing death and disability for stroke patients. Before discharge, patients also receive education on managing their health, get a follow-up visit scheduled, as well as other care transition interventions.

“Good Samaritan is dedicated to improving the quality of care for our stroke patients by implementing the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines-Stroke initiative,” said hospital president Ruth Hennessey. “The tools and resources provided help us track and measure our success in meeting evidenced-based clinical guidelines developed to improve patient outcomes.”

Good Samaritan additionally received the Association’s Target: StrokeSM Elite award and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll award. To qualify for Target: Stroke Elite status hospitals must meet 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 recognition as a Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll recipient, hospitals must meet quality measures developed with more than 90 % of compliance for 12 consecutive months for the “Overall Diabetes Cardiovascular Initiative Composite Score.”

Good Samaritan has also met specific scientific guidelines and is recognized as the only facility on Long Island to be named a Comprehensive Stroke Center by both the Joint Commission and New York State Department of Health. The Stroke & Brain Aneurysm Center at Good Samaritan features a comprehensive system for rapid diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients admitted to its emergency department.

“We are pleased to recognize Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center for their 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.”

Click here to learn more about The Stroke & Brain Aneurysm Center of Long Island at Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center