(Louisville, KY) – University of Louisville Hospital is the 1st in Kentucky to receive the American Stroke Association’s Get With The GuidelinesSM–Stroke (GWTG–Stroke) Gold Plus Performance Achievement Award.
The award was presented at the 2010 International Stroke Conference. It recognizes University of Louisville Hospital’s commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of stroke care by ensuring stroke patients receive treatment according to nationally accepted standards and recommendations. This marks the 4th consecutive year University Hospital recognized at the Gold or Gold Plus level
“With a stroke, time saved is brain saved” says Dr. Kerri Remmel, Director of the University of Louisville Hospital Stroke Program. The GWTG–Stroke Gold Performance Achievement Award recognizes the time-saving advantages available in top performing stroke programs.
University of Louisville Hospital was the first certified stroke program in the state of Kentucky. It has led the way developing comprehensive systems for rapid diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients admitted to the emergency department and across the state through remote presence technology. This includes always being equipped to provide brain imaging scans, having neurologistsavailable to conduct patient evaluations and using clot-busting medications and interventions when appropriate.
To receive the GWTG-Stroke Gold Plus Performance Achievement Award, University of Louisville Hospital demonstrated 85% adherence in the GWTG–Stroke key measures for 24 or more consecutive months and achieved 75 percent or higher compliance with six of 10 Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Quality Measures, which are reporting initiatives to measure quality of care. These include aggressive use of medications like IV-tPA, antithrombotics, anticoagulation therapy, DVT prophylaxis, cholesterol-reducing drugs, and smoking cessation.
In fact University of Louisville Hospital’s Stroke Program, the care and public education, goes above and beyond to improve patient outcomes. Nationwide only 3-4% of stroke patients make it to a hospital in time for IV-tPA medication to make a difference. University of Louisville Hospital averages 15%.
“The American Stroke Association commends University of Louisville Hospital for successfully implementing proven standards of care for stroke treatment,” said Lee H. Schwamm, M.D.,vice chair of the Get With The Guidelines steering committee and vice chairman of the neurology department at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. “By meeting Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Gold Plus Performance Achievement Award criteria, University of Louisville Hospital demonstrates its active, ongoing effort to improve the outcomes of the stroke patients it serves and save more lives.”
GWTG is a comprehensive program that provides an online interactive assessment and report tool, resources, quarterly workshops, training and feedback to staff at participating hospitals. The goal is to improve implementation of evidence-based interventions that are proven to reduce complications after stroke and the chances of a subsequent stroke or heart attack.
Stroke is the third leading cause of death in the United States. According to the American Stroke Association, approximately 795,000 people each year experience a new or recurrent stroke.