University Hospitals Nationally Recognized for High-Quality Stroke Care

CLEVELAND — University Hospitals (UH) has received numerous American Heart Association Get With The Guidelines^® - Stroke quality achievement awards for ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines, ultimately leading to more lives saved and reduced disability.

Stroke is the No. 5 cause of death and a leading cause of disability in the U.S. A stroke occurs when a blood vessel that carries oxygen and nutrients to the brain is either blocked by a clot or bursts. When that happens, part of the brain cannot get the blood and oxygen it needs, so brain cells die. Early stroke detection and treatment are key to improving survival, minimizing disability and accelerating recovery times.

Get With The Guidelines puts the expertise of the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association to work for hospitals nationwide, helping ensure patient care is aligned with the latest research- and evidence-based guidelines. Get With The Guidelines - Stroke is an in-hospital program for improving stroke care by promoting consistent adherence to these guidelines, which can minimize the long-term effects of a stroke and even prevent death.

“University Hospitals has always been at the forefront of innovation, and is committed to improving and maintaining the excellent quality of care we deliver while consistently adhering to the latest treatment guidelines,” said Amrou Sarraj, MD, FAHA, FSVIN, UH Neurological Institute and Director, Comprehensive Stroke Center and Stroke Systems, George M. Humphrey II Endowed Chair, and Professor of Neurology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. “Our team is dedicated to delivering evidence-based care to every patient, every time, and the Get With The Guidelines program has been instrumental in helping us achieve this goal. These recognitions are a testament to the tireless efforts of our physicians, nurses, and caregivers who strive for excellence in stroke care."

Each year, participants qualify for the award by demonstrating how their organization has committed to providing quality care for stroke patients. In addition to following treatment guidelines, Get With The Guidelines participants also educate patients to help them manage their health and recovery at home.

The following UH hospitals received levels of achievement this year:

Get With The Guidelines – Stroke Gold Plus and Target: Stroke℠ Honor Roll Elite Plus
Gold recognizes performance of 24 consecutive months or more. Gold Plus awards are advanced levels of recognition acknowledging hospitals for consistent compliance with quality measures. Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite Plus recognizes 75% of applicable patients experiencing door-to-needle times of 45 minutes or less, and 50% of applicable patients experiencing door-to-needle times of 30 minutes or less. (Door-to-needle times refer to the time between hospital arrival and intravenous thrombolytic therapy (IVT) administration.)

• UH Ahuja Medical Center
• UH Cleveland Medical Center
• UH Parma Medical Center
• UH Portage Medical Center

Get With The Guidelines – Stroke Gold Plus and Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite
85% of applicable patients experiencing door to needle times of 60 minutes or less

• UH Elyria Medical Center
• UH Samaritan Medical Center
• Southwest General Hospital (a joint-venture hospital)

Get With The Guidelines – Stroke Gold Plus and Target: Stroke Honor Roll
75% of applicable patients experiencing door to needle times of 60 minutes or less

• UH Geauga Medical Center, a campus of UH Regional Hospitals
• UH St. John Medical Center

Get With The Guidelines – Stroke Gold Plus 

• UH Conneaut Medical Center
• UH Geneva Medical Center
• UH Lake Health Medical Centers
• Western Reserve Hospital (a joint-venture hospital)

Get With The Guidelines – Rural Stroke Silver
This award recognizes hospitals for their efforts toward acute stroke care excellence demonstrated by composite score compliance to guideline-directed care for intravenous thrombolytic therapy, timely hospital inter-facility transfer, dysphagia screening, symptom timeline and deficit assessment documentation, emergency medical services communication, brain imaging and stroke expert consultation.

• UH Conneaut Medical Center
• UH Geneva Medical Center
• UH Samaritan Medical Center

Target Stroke Advanced Therapy Honor Roll
UH Cleveland Medical Center also met specific scientific guidelines as a Comprehensive Stroke Center achieving Target Stroke Advanced Therapy Honor Roll for the fourth year for rapid diagnosis and treatment of severe stroke patients requiring thrombectomy procedure. For this award, hospitals successfully treated at least 50% of qualified stroke patients within 90 minutes of arriving directly to their facility and within 60 minutes of arriving by EMS transport.

UH Cleveland, Elyria, Geauga, Geneva, Parma, Portage, Samaritan, and St. John medical centers, as well as Southwest General Health Center received Target: Type 2 Diabetes℠ Honor Roll awards. These awards recognize hospitals for providing the most up-to-date, evidence-based care for patients with type 2 diabetes who are hospitalized with heart failure, heart attack or stroke.

“We are incredibly pleased to recognize University Hospitals for its commitment to caring for patients with stroke,” said Steven Messe, MD, volunteer chairperson of the American Heart Association Stroke System of Care Advisory Group, and professor of neurology and director of fellowships of neurology at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. “Participation in Get With The Guidelines is associated with improved patient outcomes, fewer readmissions and lower mortality rates – a win for health care systems, families and communities.”