Rome Memorial Hospital has received the Mission: Lifeline® Gold Referring Quality Achievement Award for implementing specific quality improvement measures outlined by the American Heart Association for the treatment of patients who suffer severe heart attacks.
This is the second year in a row that the AHA has recognized the hospital for saving lives.
Every year, more than 250,000 people experience an ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), the deadliest type of heart attack, caused by a blockage of blood flow to the heart that requires timely treatment.
To prevent death, it’s critical to restore blood flow as quickly as possible, either by mechanically opening the blocked vessel or by providing clot-busting medication.
The AHA’s Mission: Lifeline program’s goal is to reduce system barriers to prompt treatment for heart attacks, beginning with the 9-1-1 call, to EMS transport and continuing through hospital treatment and discharge.
RMH earned the award by meeting specific criteria and standards of performance for promptly diagnosing STEMI patients and transferring them to hospitals that provide emergency procedures to re-establish blood flow to blocked arteries when needed.