08/13/2020
Nuvance Health hospitals Vassar Brothers Medical Center and Danbury Hospital have earned the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline® Gold Plus Receiving Quality Achievement Award for implementing specific quality improvement measures for the treatment of patients who suffer severe heart attacks.
Every year, more than 250,000 people experience an ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), the deadliest type of heart attack, caused by a blockage of blood flow to the heart that requires timely treatment. To prevent death, it’s critical to restore blood flow as quickly as possible, either by mechanically opening the blocked vessel or by providing clot-busting medication.
The American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline program’s goal is to reduce system barriers to prompt treatment for heart attacks, beginning with the 911 call, to EMS transport and continuing through hospital treatment and discharge. The initiative provides tools, training and other resources to support heart attack care following protocols from the most recent evidence-based treatment guidelines.
Vassar Brothers Medical Center and Danbury Hospital earned the award by meeting specific criteria and standards of performance for quick and appropriate treatment through emergency procedures to re-establish blood flow to blocked arteries in heart attack patients coming into the hospital directly or by transfer from another facility.
"We are honored to be recognized by the American Heart Association for our dedication and achievements in caring for patients with acute myocardial infarction,” said Dr. Mark Warshofsky, senior vice president and chair of heart and vascular services at Nuvance Health. “Our hospitals are committed to improving the quality of care for our cardiac patients. We provide a teamwork approach that allows for prompt and appropriate treatment.”
Danbury Hospital also received the American Heart Association’s Gold Plus award for its continued success in using the Get with the Guidelines® – Heart Failure and Target: Type 2 Diabetes programs.
In addition, Nuvance Health’s Putnam Hospital in Carmel, NY, earned 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.
For more information about the heart and vascular services at Nuvance Health, visit https://patients.healthquest.org/services/heart-and-vascular/. For more information about the American Heart Association, visit heart.org.