Athens Reporter

Piedmont has earned 17 American Heart Association Achievement Awards for implementing quality improvement measures that ensure cardiovascular patients receive efficient and coordinated care, ultimately leading to more lives saved, shorter recovery times and fewer returns to the hospital.

Nearly half of all adults in the United States have experienced some form of cardiovascular disease – including heart attack, stroke and heart failure. For patients with conditions that are severe enough to be transported or admitted to a hospital, time is critical.

The American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline and Get With The Guidelines programs help reduce barriers to prompt treatment for cardiovascular events. As a participant in Mission: Lifeline and Get With The Guidelines programs, Piedmont hospitals applied for the award recognitions by demonstrating how the organization has committed to improving quality care for patients.

“Piedmont is committed to improving care by adhering to the latest treatment guidelines and streamlining processes to ensure timely and proper care for heart attacks and strokes,” said Charles L. Brown, M.D., CEO of Piedmont Physician’s Enterprise. “The Mission: Lifeline and Get With The Guidelines programs make it easier for our teams to put proven knowledge and guidelines to work on a daily basis, which helps us ensure more people in Georgia experience longer, healthier lives.”

This year, Piedmont hospitals received the following Achievement Awards:

• Get With The Guidelines Stroke: GOLD PLUS with Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite Plus and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll
  • Piedmont Athens Regional Medical Center
  • Piedmont Henry Hospital
• Get With The Guidelines Stroke: GOLD PLUS with Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite Plus, Advanced Therapy and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll
  • Piedmont Atlanta Hospital
• Get With The Guidelines Stroke: GOLD PLUS with Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll
  • Piedmont Augusta Hospital
  • Piedmont Cartersville Medical Center
  • Piedmont Eastside Medical Center
  • Piedmont Fayette Hospital
  • Piedmont Newnan Hospital
  • Piedmont Newton Hospital
  • Piedmont Rockdale Hospital
  • Piedmont Walton Hospital
• Get With The Guidelines Heart Failure GOLD PLUS with Target: Heart Failure Honor Roll and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll
  • Piedmont Augusta Hospital
• Get With The Guidelines- Stroke GOLD PLUS with Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll
  • Piedmont Mountainside Hospital
• Get With The Guidelines Heart Failure: Gold Plus
  • Piedmont Athens Regional Medical Center
• Mission Lifelife: STEMI: Gold Plus Receiving
  • Piedmont Macon Medical Center
• Mission Lifeline: NSTEMI: Gold
  • Piedmont Macon Medical Center

“We are pleased to recognize Piedmont for its commitment to caring for those in their community who need cardiovascular care,” said John Warner, M.D., FAHA, past president of the American Heart Association and executive vice president for health system affairs at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. “Hospitals that follow the American Heart Association’s quality improvement protocols often see improved patient outcomes, fewer readmissions and lower mortality rates – a win for health care systems, families and communities.”

Original source can be found here.