American Heart Association Award recognizes GLENS FALLS HOSPITAL’s commitment to quality stroke care
Glens Falls, August 13, 2019 ― Glens Falls Hospital has received the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines® Target: Stroke Honor Roll Silver 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.
Glens Falls Hospital 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.
“Glens Falls Hospital 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 Cassandra Moore, director, neurology and stroke program “The tools and resources provided help us track and measure our success in meeting evidenced-based clinical guidelines developed to improve patient outcomes.”
Glens Falls Hospital additionally received the association’s Target: StrokeSM Honor Roll award. To qualify for this recognition, 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.
“We are pleased to recognize Glens Falls Hospital 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.”
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.
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About Glens Falls Hospital:
Glens Falls Hospital (GFH) maintains a service area that spans 6,000 square miles across 5 diverse counties. Founded in 1897, GFH today operates an advanced health care delivery system featuring more than 20 regional facilities. A vast array of specialized medical and surgical services are provided in addition to coronary care, behavioral health care, rehabilitation and wellness and others. The main hospital campus is home to the C.R. Wood Cancer Center, the Joyce Stock Snuggery birthing center, the Breast Center and a chronic wound healing center. GFH is a not-for-profit organization and the largest employer in New York’s Adirondack region, with over 2,500 employees and a medical staff of over 540 providers. For more information visit www.GlensFallsHospital.org.
About the Albany Med Health System:
Glens Falls Hospital is an affiliate of the Albany Med Health System, which also includes Albany Medical Center, Columbia Memorial Health and Saratoga Hospital. The region’s largest locally governed health system, it has 1,520 beds, more than 800 physicians and 125 outpatient locations throughout the Capital Region.
About Get With The Guidelines
Get With The Guidelines® is the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s hospital-based quality improvement program that provides hospitals with tools and resources to increase adherence to the latest research-based guidelines. Developed with the goal of saving lives and hastening recovery, Get With The Guidelines has touched the lives of more than 6 million patients since 2001. For more information, visit heart.org.