The Peru Gazette

PLATTSBURGH, NY (1/27/2022) – The University of Vermont Health Network-Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital (CVPH) has received the American Heart Association’s Silver Get With The Guidelines^®-Stroke Quality Achievement Award for its commitment to ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines.

Stroke is the fifth-highest cause of death and a leading cause of adult disability in the U.S. 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. Early stroke detection and treatment are key to improving survival, minimizing disability and speeding recovery times.

Get With The Guidelines-Stroke was developed to assist healthcare professionals by providing the most up-to-date, research-based guidelines for treating stroke patients.

“CVPH is honored to be recognized by the American Heart Association for our dedication to helping our patients have the best possible chance of survival after a stroke,” Colleen Bell, Clinical Quality Manager, said. “Get With The Guidelines-Stroke makes it easier for our teams to put proven knowledge and guidelines to work on a daily basis to improve outcomes for stroke patients.”

Each year, program participants are evaluated for the award recognition by demonstrating how their organization has committed to providing quality care for stroke patients. In addition to following treatment guidelines, participants also provide education to patients to help them manage their health and rehabilitation once at home.

The available evidence in the medical literature suggests that standardized protocols that utilize a multidisciplinary team to evaluate, assess, and treat stroke patients can lead to statistically significant improvements in stroke metrics and outcomes. Multidisciplinary team members include physicians, advanced practice providers, radiologists, stroke program coordinators, nurses, pharmacists, and CT technologists. Sarah Baskind, Neurology Nurse Practitioner shared, “Our team-based approach to care at CVPH has led to improvement in several of our stroke metrics. The improved metrics mean improved standards of care for patients.”

“We are pleased to recognize CVPH for its commitment to stroke care,” said Lee H. Schwamm, M.D., national member and past chairperson of the Quality Oversight Committee for the American Heart Association and Neurologist, Vice President of Telehealth for Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts. “Research has shown that hospitals adhering to clinical measures through the Get with the Guidelines quality improvement initiative can often see fewer readmissions and lower mortality rates.”

Additionally, CVPH received the Association’s Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll award. To qualify for this recognition, hospitals must meet quality measures developed with more than 90 percent of compliance for 12 consecutive months for the “Overall Diabetes Cardiovascular Initiative Composite Score.”

“Our greatest reward is caring for our patients,” Dr. Michael McMahon, Stroke Medical Director, explained. “That’s why we’ve made a commitment to turn treatment guidelines into lifelines. It is incredibly fulfilling to see the lives we’re impacting.”