DMC's Hospitals Receive Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Silver Quality Achievement Award

The Detroit Medical Center's (DMC) Receiving, Harper/Hutzel, including the Heart Hospital, Sinai-Grace and Huron Valley-Sinai hospitals have received the American Heart Association (AHA)/American Stroke Association’s (ASA) Get With The Guidelines^®-Stroke Silver Quality Achievement Award with Target: Stroke^SM Honor Roll. The award recognizes the hospitals' commitment and success ensuring that stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines based on the latest scientific evidence.

To receive the Silver Quality Achievement award, hospitals must achieve 85 percent or higher adherence to all Get With The Guidelines-Stroke achievement indicators for at least 12 consecutive months.

To qualify for the Target: Stroke^SM Honor Roll, hospitals must meet quality measures developed to reduce the time between the patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment with the clot-buster tissue plasminogen activator, or tPA, the only drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat ischemic stroke. If given intravenously in the first three hours after the start of stroke symptoms, tPA has been shown to significantly reduce the effects of stroke and lessen the chance of permanent disability. The DMC's awarded hospitals earned the award by meeting specific quality achievement measures for the diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients at a set level for a designated period.

"AHA/ASA recommended guidelines support our health care teams in delivering lifesaving treatment to patients in a timeframe that can prevent long-term disability,” said Joe Mullany, CEO, Detroit Medical Center. “This award recognizes the important work we do each day to ensure the care provided to patients is aligned with the latest research-based standards."

DMC's Receiving, Harper/Hutzel, including the Heart Hospital, Sinai-Grace and Huron Valley-Sinai hospitals have also met specific scientific guidelines as a Primary Stroke Center, featuring a comprehensive system for rapid diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients admitted to the emergency department.

“The American Heart Association and American Stroke Association recognize the DMC's commitment to stroke care,” said Paul Heidenreich, M.D., M.S., national chairman of the Get With The Guidelines Steering Committee and Professor of Medicine at Stanford University. “Research has shown there are benefits to patients who are treated at hospitals that have adopted the Get With The Guidelines program.”

Get With The Guidelines®-S puts the expertise of the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association to work for hospitals nationwide, helping hospital care teams ensure the care provided to patients is aligned with the latest research-based guidelines. Developed with the goal to save lives and improve recovery time, Get With The Guidelines®-S has impacted more than 3 million patients since 2003.