August 9, 2019 – Hospital receives Get With The Guidelines Achievement Awards, for adhering to the latest research-based standards for stroke and heart failure.
Holy Cross Hospital has received two awards from the American Heart Association in recognition of the hospital’s commitment to ensuring that patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines founded in the latest scientific evidence.
“Holy Cross Hospital is dedicated to providing patients with the highest quality of care by implementing the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines program,” said Holy Cross Hospital President and CEO Patrick Taylor, MD. “The program’s tools and resources help us track and measure our success in meeting evidenced-based clinical guidelines developed to improve outcomes for our stroke patients and patients with heart failure.”
The not-for-profit Catholic hospital received:
1.The American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines® Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite Plus Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award.
According to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, stroke is the third 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.
Holy Cross 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. These measures include evaluation of the proper use of medications and other stroke treatments aligned with the most up-to-date, evidence-based guidelines, with the goal of speeding recovery and reducing death and disability for stroke patients.
To qualify for this recognition, 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.
This is the third consecutive year that Holy Cross has been recognized for its stroke care with this award from the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines program.
2.The American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines® Heart Failure Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award.
According to the American Heart Association, more than 6.5 million adults in the United States are living with heart failure. Many heart failure patients can lead a full, enjoyable life when their condition is managed with proper medications or devices and with healthy lifestyle changes.
Holy Cross earned the award by meeting specific quality achievement measures for the diagnosis and treatment of heart failure patients at a set level for a designated period. These measures include evaluation of the proper use of medications and aggressive risk-reduction therapies. Before discharge, patients also should receive education on managing their heart failure and overall health and get a follow-up visit scheduled, as well as other care transition interventions. The goal is speeding recovery and reducing hospital readmissions for heart failure patients.
Holy Cross also is recognized on the association’s Target: Heart FailureSM Honor Roll for meeting specific criteria that improves medication adherence, provides early follow-up care and coordination, and enhances patient education. The goal of the honor roll program is not only to reduce hospital readmissions but also to help patients improve their quality of life in managing this chronic condition.
This is the seventh year that Holy Cross Hospital has been recognized by the American Heart Association for its heart failure program.
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 6 million patients since 2001. For more information, visit heart.org.
About Holy Cross Hospital
A member of Trinity Health, Fort Lauderdale, FL-based Holy Cross Hospital is a full-service, non-profit, Catholic, teaching hospital operating in the spirit of the Sisters of Mercy. Holy Cross Hospital has been named one of the top three hospitals of 64 in the Miami metro area and one of the top 15 in the state in U.S. News and World Report’s 2018-2019 Best Hospital rankings. Through strategic collaborations and a commitment to being a person-centered, transforming, healing presence, the 557-bed hospital offers progressive inpatient, outpatient and community outreach services and clinical research trials to serve as our community’s trusted health partner for life. To learn more about Holy Cross Hospital, visit holy-cross.com. Connect @holycrossfl.
