Ocala Regional Medical Center Recognized for Implementing Quality Heart Disease and Stroke Care
OCALA, FL (June 29, 2010) — Ocala Regional Medical Center has been recognized for achievement in using evidence-based guidelines to provide the best possible care to patients through The American Heart Association/ American Stroke Association’s Get With The GuidelinesSM program.
Ocala Regional Medical Center and 569 other hospitals are featured in a July 28 advertisement in the “America’s Best Hospitals” issue of US News & World Report to commemorate their receipt of Get With The Guidelines Gold or Silver Performance Achievement Award. The awards are given for achievement in coronary artery disease, stroke and/or heart failure treatment.
Hospitals are recognized in each category in which they achieve at least 85 percent compliance to Get With The Guidelines measures. Those hospitals marking 85 percent compliance for 24 consecutive months are given the Gold Performance Achievement Award, with the Silver Performance Achievement award going to those with 85 percent compliance for 12 consecutive months.
Get With The Guidelines is a hospital-based quality-improvement program designed to ensure that hospitals consistently care for cardiac and stroke patients following the most up-to-date guidelines and recommendations. The program addresses coronary artery disease, heart failure and stroke. Currently more than 1,450 hospitals participate in the program.
The American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s award recognizes Ocala Regional Medical Center’s commitment and success in performance achievement.
“The American Heart Association is pleased to recognize its top Get With The Guidelines participants,” said. Lee Schwamm, M.D., national chairman, of the Get With The Guidelines steering committee, associate professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School and Vice Chairman of Neurology at Massachusetts General Hospital. “Healthcare providers who use Get With The Guidelines are armed with the latest evidence-based guidelines and immediate access to clinical decision support. The goal of this initiative is to ultimately improve the quality of life and help reduce deaths among heart and stroke patients.”
“We are proud that the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association have chosen the ‘America’s Best Hospitals’ issue of US News & World Report to recognize Ocala Regional Medical Center for our achievements in the Get With The Guidelines program,” said H. Rex Etheredge, Chief Executive Office for Ocala Health System. “Get With The Guidelines provides our professionals with the tools and data they need to continuously improve the way we effectively treat our stroke patients.”
About Ocala Regional Medical Center
Ocala Regional Medical Center is a 200-bed hospital located in the heart of Ocala. It offers a host of specialized medical services including bariatric surgery, cancer, cardiac and vascular, emergency, neurological and rehabilitation services.
About Get With The Guidelines
Get With The GuidelinesSM (GWTG) 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 americanheart.org/getwiththeguidelines.
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