(WEST CHESTER, PA) -- Chester County Hospital has received FOUR American Heart Association Get With The Guidelines and Mission: Lifeline achievement awards for demonstrating commitment to following up-to-date, research-based procedures for the treatment of heart disease and stroke, ultimately leading to more lives saved, shorter recovery times and fewer readmissions to the hospital.
Every 40 seconds, someone in the U.S. has a stroke or heart attack, and heart disease and stroke are the No. 1 and No. 5 causes of all American deaths, respectively. Studies show patients can recover better when providers consistently follow treatment guidelines.
Get With The Guidelines and Mission: Lifeline put the expertise of the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association to work for hospitals nationwide, helping to ensure patient care is aligned with the latest evidence- and research-based guidelines. As a participant in both Mission: Lifeline and Get With The Guidelines programs, Chester County Hospital qualified for the awards by demonstrating how its organization has committed to improving quality care.
"Chester County Hospital is dedicated 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 Melissa Spahr RN, Coordinator at The Chester County Hospital Stroke Program. "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 Chester County experience longer, healthier lives."
This year, Chester County Hospital has received these achievement awards:
- Get With The Guidelines® - AFIB Gold
- Get With The Guidelines® Heart Failure GoldPlus
- Target: Heart Failure Honor Roll
- Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll
- Get With The Guidelines® Stroke GoldPlus
- Target: Stroke Honor Roll
- Target: Type 2 Diabetes
- Mission Lifeline: STEMI Receiving Center Gold Plus
Christopher Ware, MD, Vice-Chair of Emergency Medicine and the Medical Director of the Stroke Program at Chester County Hospital. adds: "This continued success has been in the face of extreme adversity including COVID, increased volumes due to local hospital closures, ED renovations & expansions, and more. We are proud of the teams for their commitment to our patients and for their work to obtain these prestigious designations."
"We are pleased to recognize Chester County Hospital for its commitment to caring for those in their community who need cardiovascular care," said John Warner, MD, 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."
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About Mission: Lifeline
The American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline program helps hospitals and emergency medical services develop systems of care that follow proven standards and procedures for STEMI patients. The program works by mobilizing teams across the continuum of care to implement American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology Foundation clinical treatment guidelines. For more information, visit The American Heart Association.
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 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 12 million patients since 2001. For more information, visit The American Heart Association.
About Chester County Hospital
Founded in 1892 as the county's first hospital, the non-profit has grown into a 309-bed acute-care inpatient facility in West Chester, PA. It also has outpatient services in Exton, West Goshen, New Garden, West Grove, Jennersville and Kennett Square, PA. In 2013, Chester County Hospital became part of Penn Medicine, which is one of the world's leading academic medical centers, dedicated to medical education, biomedical research, and excellent patient care. In addition to quality-driven medical and surgical services, Chester County Hospital also offers home health, inpatient hospice and skilled nursing care; occupational medicine; outpatient laboratory, radiology and physical therapy services; wound care; cardiopulmonary rehab; and a prenatal clinic for the underserved. In 2020, Chester County Hospital completed the largest expansion in its history. The project welcomed a state-of-the-art procedural platform with 15 operating room suites, a 99-bed patient tower, a new main entrance and an expanded and renovated Emergency Department. Learn More About Chester County Hospital! >>