Southern Regional Medical Center has again earned The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval® and the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Heart-Check mark for Advanced Primary Stroke Center Certification.
Designated by The Joint Commission and the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, the prestigious certification demonstrates the hospital’s expertise in addressing the needs of and treating stroke patients quickly and efficiently. The hospital first earned Advanced Primary Stroke Center certification in 2008 and has continually been recertified acknowledging proficiency in providing advanced care.
“We are honored to earn this recertification as it represents the hospital’s success in meeting the high-performance standards of stroke care that are critical to achieving long-term success in improving our patients’ outcomes,” states Vikram Mandadi, MD, Cardiologist and Chief Medical Officer at Southern Regional. “Our patients health and well-being are paramount and following these clinical guidelines aligns our team in assuring evidence-based, consistent, quality care.”
Southern Regional underwent a rigorous, by a team of Joint Commission reviewers who evaluated compliance with related certification standards. The Joint Commission standards are developed in consultation with health care experts and providers, measurement experts and patients. The reviewers also conducted onsite observations and interviews.
“Advanced Primary Stroke Center Certification recognizes health care organizations committed to fostering continuous improvement in patient safety and quality of care,” says Deborah Ryan, MS, RN, interim Executive Vice President, Accreditation and Certification Operations, The Joint Commission. “We commend Southern Regional Medical Center for using certification to reduce variation in its clinical processes and to strengthen its program structure and management framework for stroke patients.”
“We congratulate Southern Regional Medical Center for this outstanding achievement,” says Nancy Brown, Chief Executive Officer, the American Stroke Association. “This certification reflects its commitment to providing the highest quality of care for stroke patients.”
Established in 2003, the Advanced Primary Stroke Center Certification is awarded every two years to Joint Commission-accredited acute care hospitals. The prestigious designation is based on the recommendations for primary stroke centers published by the Brain Attack Coalition and the American Stroke Association’s statements and guidelines for stroke care.
Stroke is the number four cause of death and a leading cause of adult disability in the United States, according to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. On average, someone suffers a stroke every 40 seconds; someone dies of a stroke every four minutes; and 795,000 people suffer a new or recurrent stroke each year.