Ballywho News

By Tammy Robiconti, Marketing Director

Largo Medical Center has received the American Stroke Association’s Get With the Guidelines® Stroke Bronze Performance Achievement Award. The award recognizes Largo Medical Center’s commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of stroke care by ensuring that stroke patients receive treatment according to nationally accepted standards and recommendations.

“With a stroke, time lost is brain lost, and the Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Bronze Performance Achievement Award addresses the important element of time,” said Largo Medical Center Chief Executive Officer, Richard S. Hatcher.

Largo Medical Center has developed a comprehensive program for rapid diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients who arrive in the emergency department. This includes having the appropriate diagnostic equipment and physician specialists available. The hospital has also received Advanced Primary Stroke Center Certification by the Joint Commission.

“The time is right for Largo Medical Center to be focused on improving the quality of stroke care by implementing Get With The Guidelines-Stroke. The number of acute ischemic patients eligible for treatment is expecting to grow over the next decade due to increasing stroke incidence and a large aging population,” said Largo Medical Center Stroke Coordinator, Wayne Tate, RN.

To receive the Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Bronze Performance Achievement Award, Largo Medical Center consistently followed the treatment guidelines in the Get With The Guidelines-Stroke program for 90 days. These include aggressive use of medications like tPA, antithrombotics, anticoagulation therapy, DVT prophylaxis, cholesterol reducing drugs, and smoking cessation. The 90day evaluation period is the first in an ongoing self-evaluation by the hospital to continually reach the 85% compliance level needed to sustain this award.

“The American Stroke Association commends Largo Medical Center for its success in implementing standards of care and protocols,” said Lee H. Schwamm, MD, Vice-Chair of the Neurology department and Director of 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.”

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 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 stroke. Through Get With The Guideliens-Stroke, customized patient education materials are made available at the point of distcharge, based on patients” individual risk profiles. The take-away materials are written in an easy-to-understand format and are available in English and Spanish. In addition, the Get With The Guidelines Patient Management Tool provides access to up-to-date cardiovascular and stroke science at the point of care.