BW/F Awarded for Stroke Care
Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Faulkner Hospital received the American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Silver Performance Achievement Award for commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of stroke care.
“During a stroke, time lost is brain lost, and the GWTG–Stroke Silver Performance Achievement Award addresses the urgency of quick, high-quality care,” said Linda Bresette, NP, Stroke Program manager for BW/F.
That includes a comprehensive system for rapid diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients admitted to the Emergency Department. Both BWH and Faulkner have developed systems to ensure EDs at both hospitals constantly are ready to provide brain imaging scans, have neurologists available to conduct patient evaluations and use clot-busting medications when appropriate.
To receive the GWTG-Stroke Silver Performance Achievement Award, BWH and Faulkner consistently complied for at least one year with the requirements in the GWTG–Stroke program. These include aggressive use of medications like tPA, antithrombotics, anticoagulation therapy, DVT prophylaxis, cholesterol reducing drugs, and smoking cessation. This 12-month evaluation period is the second in an ongoing self-evaluation by the hospitals to continually reach the 85 percent compliance level needed to sustain this award.