Covenant Health Hospitals Recognized for Excellent Heart & Stroke Care

Six Hospitals Receive Awards from American Heart Association and American Stroke Association

When heart attack or stroke occurs, faster treatment and the most effective clinical practices often mean better outcomes. “Get With The Guidelines” and “Mission: Lifeline” are two designations from the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association (AHA/ASA) that recognize hospitals for continually delivering excellent care to heart attack and stroke patients. Research has shown that hospitals following the clinical practices outlined in these improvement initiatives often see fewer readmissions and lower mortality rates.

Six Covenant Health hospitals recently received 2021 designations: Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center, Parkwest Medical Center (both in Knoxville), LeConte Medical Center (Sevierville), Methodist Medical Center (Oak Ridge), Morristown-Hamblen Healthcare System (Morristown), and Roane Medical Center (Harriman).

According to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, stroke is the fifth-leading cause of death and a leading cause of adult disability in the United States. On average, someone in the U.S. suffers a stroke every 40 seconds and nearly 795,000 people suffer a new or recurrent stroke each year. Research has shown that hospitals adhering to clinical measures through the Get With The Guidelines quality improvement initiative often see fewer readmissions and lower mortality rates.

Each year, more than 250,000 people experience an ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), the deadliest type of heart attack, caused by a blockage of blood flow to the heart that requires timely treatment. To prevent death, it is critical to restore blood flow as quickly as possible, either by mechanically opening the blocked vessel or by providing clot-busting medication. The American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline program recognizes hospitals who gave optimal care for heart attack patients takes coordination between the individual hospital, EMS and healthcare system.

Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center has achieved:

  • Mission: Lifeline Gold Plus Receiving Award
  • Mission: Lifeline NSTEMI Gold Quality Achievement Award
  • Get With The Guidelines Gold Plus Achievement Award with Target: Stroke Elite Plus Honor Roll; Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll; Target: Stroke Advanced Therapy Honor Roll

Parkwest Medical Center has achieved:

  • Mission: Lifeline Gold Plus Receiving Award
  • Mission: Lifeline NSTEMI Gold Achievement Award
  • Get with the Guidelines Stroke Gold Plus Achievement Award with Target Stroke Elite Plus Honor Roll; Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

LeConte Medical Center has achieved:

  • Get With The Guidelines Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award with Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

Methodist Medical Center has achieved:

  • Mission: Lifeline NSTEMI Gold Quality Achievement Award
  • Mission: Lifeline Gold Plus Receiving Quality Achievement Award
  • Get with the Guidelines Stroke Gold Plus Achievement Award with Target: Stroke Elite Plus Honor Roll; Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

Morristown-Hamblen Medical Center has achieved:

  • Mission: Lifeline Bronze Referral Receiving Award

Roane Medical Center has achieved:

  • Get with the Guidelines Stroke Gold Plus Achievement Award

ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) is a very serious type of heart attack during which one of the heart’s major arteries (one of the arteries that supplies oxygen and nutrient-rich blood to the heart muscle) is blocked.

A non-ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) is caused by a partial blockage of blood flow to the heart that requires timely treatment. To prevent death, it is critical to restore blood flow as quickly as possible, either by mechanically opening the blocked vessel or by providing clot-busting medication.

Each of these Covenant Health facilities achieved the standards of excellence because the medical teams are dedicated to helping our patients achieve the best possible outcomes. Implementing the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s® Get With The Guidelines®/Mission: Lifeline® programs help us achieve those outcomes by making it easier for our teams to put proven knowledge and guidelines to work on a daily basis.

Tags for this post:

News & Articles

Covenant Health