Excellence In Stroke Care
Bassett Receives American Stroke Association’s Silver Plus Quality Achievement Award
Cooperstown, N.Y. Bassett Healthcare Network has received a notable award from the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke program. The Get With The Guidelines-Stroke (GWTG-Stroke) Silver Plus Quality Achievement Award recognizes Bassett’s commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of stroke care by ensuring that stroke patients receive treatment according to nationally accepted standards and recommendations.
“With a stroke, time lost is brain lost, and the GWTG–Stroke Silver Plus Quality Achievement Award demonstrates that our staff is committed to providing care that has been shown in the scientific literature to quickly and efficiently treat stroke patients with evidence-based protocols,” said Dr. Paul Deringer, Chief of Neurology. Bassett has a comprehensive system for rapid diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients admitted to the emergency department. This includes being equipped 24 hours a day, seven days a week to provide brain imaging scans, having neurologists available to conduct patient evaluations and using clot-busting medications when appropriate.
To receive the award, Bassett achieved at least 12 consecutive months of 85 percent or higher adherence to all GWTG-Stroke Quality Achievement indicators and achieved at least 75 percent or higher compliance with six of 10 GWTG-Stroke Quality Measures during that same period of time, which are reporting initiatives to measure quality of care. These measures include aggressive use of medications, such as, tPA, antithrombotics, anticoagulation therapy, DVT prophylaxis, cholesterol reducing drugs, and smoking cessation services, all aimed at reducing death and disability and improving the lives of stroke patients.
“The number of acute ischemic stroke patients eligible for treatment is expected to grow over the next decade due to increasing stroke incidence and a large aging population,” said Dr. Deringer. Each year, about 700,000 people suffer a stroke — 500,000 are first attacks and 200,000 are recurrent. Of stroke survivors, 22 percent of men and 25 percent of women die within a year, and for those aged 65 and older, the percentage is even higher.
“Bassett Healthcare Network is to be commended for its commitment to implementing standards of care and protocols for treating stroke patients,” said Lee H. Schwamm, M.D., chair of the GWTG National Steering Committee and director of the TeleStroke and Acute Stroke Services at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.“The full implementation of acute care and secondary prevention recommendations and guidelines is a critical step in saving the lives and improving outcomes of stroke patients.”
GWTG-Stroke uses the “teachable moment,” the time soon after a patient has had an acute event, when they are most likely to listen to and follow their healthcare professionals’ guidance. Studies demonstrate that patients who are taught how to manage their risk factors while still in the hospital reduce their risk of a second heart attack or stroke. Through GWTG–Stroke, customized patient education materials are made available at the point of discharge, based on patients’ individual risk profiles. The take-away materials are written in an easy-to-understand format and are available in English and Spanish. In addition, the Patient Management Tool provides access to up-to-date cardiovascular and stroke science at the point of care.
The American Stroke Association offers a wide array of programs, products and services, from patient education materials to scientific statements with cutting-edge information for healthcare professionals. Get With The Guidelines® is the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s hospital-based quality improvement program that empowers healthcare teams to save lives and reduce healthcare costs by helping hospitals follow evidence-based guidelines and recommendations. For more information, visit www.heart.org/quality.
