F.F. Thompson Hospital recently received the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines® Stroke Gold Achievement Award.  The award recognizes Thompson’s commitment and success in implementing excellent care for stroke patients, according to evidence-based guidelines.

            Thompson is a New York State-designated Stroke Center. To receive the Gold award, the hospital achieved of 85 percent or higher adherence to all Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Achievement indicators for two or more consecutive 12-month intervals

In addition to the Get With The Guidelines-Stroke award, Thompson has also been recognized as a recipient of the association’s Target: Stroke Honor Roll, for improving stroke care. 

            “With a stroke, time lost is brain lost, and the Get With The Guidelines–Stroke Gold Achievement Award demonstrates Thompson’s commitment to being one of the top hospitals in the country for providing aggressive, proven stroke care,” said Dr. Anthony Geraci, Vice President of Emergency & Outpatient Practices for Thompson Health. “We will continue with our focus on providing care that has been shown in the scientific literature to quickly and efficiently treat stroke patients with evidence-based protocols.”  

            According to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, stroke is the third leading cause of death in the United States and a leading cause of serious, long-term disability.  On average, someone suffers a stroke every 45 seconds; someone dies of a stroke every three minutes; and 795,000 people suffer a new or recurrent stroke each year.

            Get With The Guidelines–Stroke uses the “teachable moment,” the time soon after a patient has had a stroke, 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.

            “Thompson 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 Get With The Guidelines 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.”