South Atlanta News

Southern Regional Medical Center issued the following announcement on Aug. 26.

American Heart Association presents Get With The Guidelines-Stroke GoldPlus Award for commitment to prioritizing quality care for stroke patients

Southern Regional Medical Center has received the American Heart Association’s GoldPlus Get With The Guidelines® – Stroke Quality Achievement Award with Honor Roll Elite and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll for our commitment to ensuring 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 healthcare professionals to provide the most up-to-date, research-based guidelines for treating stroke patients.

“Southern Regional is honored to once again be recognized by the American Heart Association for our dedication to helping patients have the best possible chance of survival after a stroke,” said Charlotte W. Dupré, President and CEO of Southern Regional. “Our Primary Stroke Center team works diligently to assure best practices through the Get With The Guidelines-Stroke program and strives, every day, to improve outcomes for stroke patients. This recognition is a true testament to their commitment.”

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, Southern Regional also provides education to patients to help them manage their health and rehabilitation once at home.

“We are pleased to recognize Southern Regional Medical Center of Riverdale, GA, 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.”

In addition to the Gold Plus award, Southern Regional Medical Center received:

• Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite – meeting quality measures developed to reduce the time between the patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment with the clot-buster tissue plasminogen activator (tPA).
• Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll – meeting quality measures developed with more than 90% of compliance for 12 consecutive months for the “Overall Diabetes Cardiovascular Initiative Composite Score.”

As a Primary Stroke Center, Southern Regional has also met the specific scientific guidelines based on a comprehensive system for rapid diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients admitted to the emergency department.

Southern Regional has served Clayton County and the southern crescent communities of metro Atlanta for the past 50 years. The hospital is one of the fifteen hospitals that are members of the Prime Healthcare Foundation, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit public charity. Prime Healthcare is an award-winning health system operating 46 hospitals and more than 300 outpatient locations in 14 states, providing over 2.6 million patient visits annually. It is one of the nation's leading health systems with nearly 50,000 employees and physicians dedicated to providing the highest quality healthcare.

Original source can be found here.