Piedmont Cartersville Earns National Recognition for Efforts to Improve Stroke Treatment

Piedmont Cartersville earns national recognition for efforts to improve stroke treatment

The American Heart Association presents Get With The Guidelines- GoldPlus, Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll award for commitment to prioritizing quality care for stroke patients

CARTERSVILLE, GA; — Piedmont Cartersville Medical Center has received the American Heart Association’s Gold Plus, Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Quality Achievement Award for their 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. 

“Piedmont Cartersville is honored to be recognized by the American Heart Association for our dedication to helping our patients have the best possible chance of survival and after a stroke,” said Chris Mosley, CEO. “Get With The Guidelines-Stroke makes it easier for our teams to put proven knowledge and guidelines to work on a daily basis to improve outcomes for stroke patients.”

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, participants also provide education to patients to help them manage their health and rehabilitation once at home.

“We are pleased to recognize Piedmont Cartersville 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.”
Piedmont Cartersville also received the Association’s Target: StrokeSM Honor Roll Elite 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.  

Additionally, Piedmont Cartersville received the Association’s Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll award. To qualify for this recognition, hospitals must meet quality measures developed with more than 90% of compliance for 12 consecutive months for the “Overall Diabetes Cardiovascular Initiative Composite Score.” 

Piedmont Cartersville also met specific scientific guidelines as a Primary Stroke Center, featuring a comprehensive system for rapid diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients admitted to the emergency department.

Know the signs of stroke. Remember the BE-FAST acronym: Balance, Eyes, Facial drooping, Arm weakness, Speech difficulties and Time. If you or someone you know is having symptoms of stroke, please call 911.
###

About Piedmont Cartersville Medical Center:
Piedmont Cartersville Medical Center is a 119-bed acute care hospital, Chest Pain Center, Certified Primary Stroke Center, Level III Trauma Center, Certified Total Joint program and Gold Seal Inpatient Diabetes program facility accredited by the Joint Commission.  The Breast Imaging Center at The Women’s Center provides mammography services that are gold seal accredited by the American College of Radiology.  The Advanced Wound Healing Center provides specialized treatment for chronic or non-healing wounds.  The Hope Center, a regional cancer treatment facility, is conveniently located on the hospital campus and provides over 4,000 treatments with over 300 new patients per year from a ten county region. 
For more information about programs and services offered at Piedmont Cartersville, visit www.piedmont.org.

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 9 million patients since 2001. For more information, visit heart.org/quality.