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Outstanding Clinical Quality in Stroke, Heart Attack and Heart Failure

Albany, N.Y., April 29, 2009 — Albany Medical Center has been recognized by the American Heart Association/Stroke Association for leading the nation in following evidence-based guidelines for patients with heart failure, coronary artery disease and stroke. By receiving the Gold Performance Achievement Award in all three categories, Albany Med becomes one of only two hospitals in New York State, and one of 13 in the nation, to receive this distinction under the American Heart Association/Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines (GWTG) program.

This accomplishment signifies that Albany Med has distinguished itself among other hospitals in reaching an aggressive goal of treating coronary artery disease, stroke and heart failure patients with greater than 85 percent compliance to core standard levels of care outlined by the American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology’s secondary prevention guidelines and recommendations.

“I’m incredibly proud of the talented cardiology team and their success in implementing a higher standard of care for our heart disease patients,” said Edward Philbin, M.D., associate professor of medicine and vice chair for clinical affairs of the department of medicine, and Governor George E. Pataki Chair in Cardiology at Albany Medical Center. “Achieving this distinction reflects a broad institutional commitment to providing high quality care to all our patients.”

“This recognition speaks volumes about the stroke team here at Albany Med, and I am proud to receive this distinction on their behalf,” said Gary Bernardini, M.D., Ph.D., professor and director of stroke and neurocritical care, departments of neurology and neurosurgery, and Edith M. Hellman and Hellman Family Chair in Stroke Medicine at Albany Medical Center. “The best possible outcomes for stroke patients are directly related to established guidelines—such as those under the Get With The Guidelines program—for treatment and prevention of complications from stroke.”

Get With the Guidelines helps ensure that patients treated and discharged receive quality care in accordance with guidelines that will reduce the risk of secondary events. It takes advantage of the “teachable moment,” the time soon after an acute event, when patients are most likely to listen to their health care professionals’ treatment recommendations. Studies demonstrate that patients who are taught how to manage their risk factors while still in the hospital reduce their risk of a second heart attack or stroke.

“The full implementation of acute and secondary prevention guideline recommended therapy is a critical step in reducing death and disability of cardiovascular disease patients,” said Gregg C. Fonarow, M.D., chair of the National GWTG Steering Committee and director of Ahmanson-UCLA Cardiomyopathy Center. “The goal of the Get With The Guidelines program is to help hospitals like Albany Med implement appropriate evidence-based care and protocols that will reduce the number of deaths in these patients and in their communities. Albany Medical Center has achieved a high level of performance in terms of implementing these life-prolonging treatments.”

Under the protocols, heart patients are started on aggressive risk-reduction therapies such as cholesterol-lowering drugs, beta-blockers, ACE inhibitors, aspirin, diuretics and anticoagulants in the hospital. In the case of stroke, they may receive tPA, antithrombotics or anticoagulation, or treatment to prevent deep vein thrombosis. They also receive alcohol/drug use and smoking management counseling and referrals for rehabilitation before being discharged.

The GTWG program issues performance awards for stroke, coronary artery disease, and heart failure care in three categories: initial (bronze), annual (silver), and sustained (gold). Initial performance awards are given out when hospitals successfully implement the program’s quality measures for three consecutive months. Annual awards are given out for 12 consecutive months of successful implementation, and sustained awards are given out after two consecutive years of top performance.

Albany Med received Initial Performance Awards in all three categories in 2005 and 2006, and became the second hospital in the nation to receive the Annual Performance Awards in all three categories in 2007—the same year Albany Med was awarded the Pinnacle Award for Quality Improvement in New York State by the Healthcare Association of New York State for quality improvements in the treatment of coronary artery disease, heart failure and stroke.

Albany Medical Center is northeastern New York’s only academic health sciences center. It consists of Albany Medical College, Albany Medical Center Hospital and the Albany Medical Center Foundation, Inc. Additional information about Albany Medical Center can be found at www.amc.edu.

For more information on Get With The Guidelines, visit: www.americanheart.org/getwiththeguidelines.

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