For Immediate Release – January 5, 2010
Contact: Julie Holland, Marketing/Communications Specialist
(509) 473-7027 or (509) 981-3447; HollanJJ@empirehealth.org
Deaconess Medical Center honored with Gold Performance Award for cardiac care
Spokane, Wash. – Deaconess Medical Center has been awarded the prestigious Gold Performance Achievement Award for 2009 from the American College of Cardiology Foundation and the American Heart Association – one of only 121 hospitals nationwide so honored.
The award recognizes Deaconess’ commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of care for heart attack patients, and signifies that the medical center has attained or exceeded the aggressive goal of treating coronary artery disease patients with 85 percent compliance to core standard levels of care outlined by the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association clinical guidelines and recommendations.
To earn the organization’s “ACTION Registry–Get With The Guidelines Gold Performance Achievement Award,” Deaconess consistently followed the quality care program’s treatment guidelines for 24 consecutive months. These include aggressive use of medications like cholesterol-lowering drugs, beta-blockers, ACE inhibitors, aspirin, and anticoagulants in the medical center.
“Deaconess’ long-established reputation as a leader in heart and vascular medicine is re-affirmed by this honor,” said Bill Gilbert, CEO. “It’s great to see our physicians and staff recognized for their daily commitment to providing the highest quality care.”
According to American College of Cardiology Foundation and the American Heart Association, the time is right for Deaconess to be focused on the quality of cardiovascular care. The number of acute heart attack patients eligible for treatment is expected to grow over the next decade due to increasing incidence of heart disease and a large aging population.
The award program was created with the merger of the American College of Cardiology Foundation’s NCDR ACTION Registry® and the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines program to empower healthcare provider teams to consistently treat heart attack patients according to the most current, science-based guidelines. The ACCF/AHA program establishes a national standard for understanding and improving the quality, safety, and outcomes of care provided for patients with coronary artery disease, specifically high-risk STEMI and NSTEMI patients.
Deaconess Medical Center is a licensed 388-bed acute care hospital fully accredited by The Joint Commission and located in downtown Spokane, Washington.
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