In recognition of its commitment to ensuring that local stroke patients receive high-quality healthcare, Valley Baptist Medical Center-Brownsville has received the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite Plus Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award.
The award recognizes VBMC-Brownsville’s commitment to ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines based on the latest scientific evidence.
Valley Baptist-Brownsville earned the 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 should also receive education on managing their health, get a follow-up visit scheduled, as well as other care transition interventions.
“We are pleased to recognize Valley Baptist Medical Center-Brownsville 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.”
Leslie Bingham, CEO for VBMC-Brownsville, said the awards from the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association are tangible evidence of the hospital’s commitment to meeting the highest patient safety standards while providing outstanding healthcare.
“Earning awards such as these signifies our ability to consistently deliver safe, excellent care to stroke patients in our community, which is of critical importance now more than ever,” Bingham said. “The Get With the Guidelines recognition from the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association reflects our commitment to excellence and improving the health and well-being of our patients.”
To qualify for the Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite Plus, 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. If given intravenously in the first three hours after the start of stroke symptoms, tPA has been shown to significantly reduce the effects of stroke and lessen the chance of permanent disability.
