Fremont, Calif., July 15, 2013- At last week’s Washington Township Health Care District Board Meeting,
Washington Hospital’s Stroke Program was recognized as a recipient
of the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s
Get With The Guidelines® Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award and the
Target Stroke Honor Roll Award for improving stroke care. The awards,
presented by an American Heart Association (AHA) representative, acknowledge
the hospital’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.
To receive the Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award, Washington Hospital
attained at least 85 percent compliance on all Get With The Guidelines®-
Stroke Quality Achievement indicators for two or more consecutive years
and achieved 75 percent or higher compliance with six of 10 Get With The
Guidelines®-Stroke Quality Measures.
Additionally, Washington Hospital was also recognized as a recipient of
the AHA’s Target Stroke Honor Roll. This award recognizes hospitals
that treat acute ischemic stroke in the most effective way possible using
evidence-based guidelines. The goal is a door-to-needle time within 60
minutes in at least 50 percent of ischemic stroke patients treated with
IV Tissue Plasminogen Activator (TPA), which is known as the “clot
busting” medication. This means that the patient receives this important,
life-saving intervention within 60 minutes of arrival to the hospital.
To be eligible for the Target Stroke Honor Roll Award, the hospital must
currently hold Gold, Silver or Bronze performance achievement status with
Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke and have door-to-needle times within
60 minutes.
“Washington Hospital works hard to ensure that patients receive the
very best care possible when they come to the hospital, and we are extremely
honored to receive these two significant distinctions in the clinical
field of stroke care,” said Nancy Farber, Washington Hospital Healthcare
System CEO. “The ability to provide key treatments in a timely manner
means a greater possibility for improved outcomes for our patients.”
According to the National Stroke Association, despite the fact that stroke
is the #4 cause of death and the #1 cause of serious, long-term disability,
it is 80 percent preventable by putting standard prevention measures into
place. On average, someone suffers a stroke every 45 seconds, someone
dies of a stroke every four minutes and 795,000 people suffer a new or
recurrent stroke each year. Washington Hospital is a certified Stroke
Center designated by the County EMS Agency. As a certified Primary Stroke
Center, Washington Hospital’s Stroke Team rapidly treats stroke
to reduce disability and save lives.
“Our skilled and coordinated response to acute ischemic stroke in
the Emergency Department is improving the outcomes in patients with strokes,”
said Ash Jain, M.D., Stroke Program Medical Director. “We have a
stroke program at Washington Hospital that is second to none, and we will
continue to refine our approach to treating stroke patients by using best
known practices, the latest technology and coordinating the available
expertise to achieve the best results.”
About Washington Township Health Care District: Washington Township Health Care District is governed by an elected board
of directors. Unlike a municipal or county hospital, Washington Hospital’s
operating expenses, research, community programs, and employee salaries
are funded by revenues generated through providing patient and other health
care services. Washington Hospital Healthcare System includes a 389-bed
acute-care hospital; the Taylor McAdam Bell Neuroscience Institute; The
Gamma Knife® Center; Washington Radiation Oncology Center; Washington
Outpatient Surgery Center; Washington Outpatient Rehabilitation Center;
Washington Interventional Center; Institute for Joint Restoration and
Research; the Institute for Minimally Invasive and Robotic Surgery; and
Washington West, a complex which houses Washington Women’s Center,
Outpatient Imaging Center, Sandy Amos R.N. Infusion Center, Washington
Urgent Care and additional outpatient hospital services and administrative
facilities.