BETTENDORF, Iowa–– UnityPoint Health – Trinity Bettendorf has received the American Heart Association’s Get With the Guidelines – Stroke Gold Plus quality achievement award. The award is for the hospital’s commitment to 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 fifth leading cause of death and a leading cause of disability in the United States. 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.
“Putting proven knowledge and guidelines to work on a daily basis helps patients recover better and faster,” says Mohammad Sajed, MD, Medical Director of Stroke and Neurohospitalist program at UnityPoint Health – Trinity. “Our team strives to recognize and treat stroke symptoms in less
than 60 minutes. This evidence-based approach to care gives providers the tools they need to effectively treat stroke patients and place them on the best path for recovery and rehabilitation.”
If you’re showing symptoms of a stroke, you should call 9-1-1 immediately. Getting to an emergency-based hospital can increase the chance of survival and prevent long-term disability. At Trinity, stroke patients receive the highest level of neurological care, immediate consultation for emergency stroke care and streamlined access to rehabilitation and support care specific for stroke survivors and their loved ones.
“We are incredibly pleased to recognize UnityPoint Health – Trinity for its commitment to caring for patients with stroke,” says Steven Messe, M.D., chair of the Stroke System of Care Advisory Group. “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.”
Each year, program 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 het Guidelines participants also educate patients to help them manage their health and
recovery at home.
UnityPoint Health – Trinity also received the American Heart Association’s Target: Type Two Diabetes Honor Roll award. Target: Type Two Diabetes aims to ensure patients with Type Two diabetes, who might be at higher risk for complications, receive the most up-to-date, evidence-based care when
hospitalized due to stroke.
To learn more about stroke treatment, recovery and support at Trinity, visit unitypoint.org.
