Atlanta, Ga. (August 25, 2020) - Six of Piedmont Healthcare’s hospitals were recently recognized by the American College of Cardiology's NCDR Chest Pain - MI Registry. In 2020, Piedmont Fayette Hospital and Piedmont Newnan Hospital received the Platinum Performance Achievement Award, Piedmont Athens Regional Medical Center received the Gold Performance Achievement Award, and Piedmont Atlanta Hospital, Piedmont Henry Hospital and Piedmont Rockdale Hospital received the Silver Performance Achievement Award.
The award recognizes Piedmont’s commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of care for heart attack patients and signifies that these hospitals have all reached an aggressive goal of treating these patients to standard levels of care as outlined by the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association clinical guidelines and recommendations.
"The cardiovascular groups at Piedmont have been on the forefront of providing top quality care for patients suffering from cardiovascular disease throughout Georgia," said Charles L. Brown III, M.D., CEO of Piedmont Physician Enterprise. "Piedmont Heart Institute ranks in the top 5 percent in the country among cardiovascular organizations and is honored to be recognized by the American College of Cardiology for our achievements."
To receive the Chest Pain ̶ MI Registry Performance Achievement Award, hospitals have to demonstrate sustained achievement in the Chest Pain ̶ MI Registry for two consecutive years (2018 and 2019), and performed at the highest level for specific performance measures. Full participation in the registry engages hospitals in a robust quality improvement process using data to drive improvements in adherence to guideline recommendations and overall quality of care provided to heart attack patients.
"As a Performance Award recipient, Piedmont has established itself as a leader in setting the national standard for improving quality of care in patients with acute myocardial infarction," said Michael C. Kontos, MD, FACC, chair of the NCDR Chest Pain – MI Registry Steering Subcommittee, Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center. "By meeting the award requirements set forth in the registry, Piedmont has demonstrated a commitment to providing reliable, comprehensive treatment for heart attack patients based on current clinical guideline recommendations."
The Center for Disease Control estimates that almost 700,000 Americans suffer a heart attack each year. A heart attack occurs when a blood clot in a coronary artery partially or completely blocks blood flow to the heart muscle. Treatment guidelines include administering aspirin upon arrival and discharge, timely restoration of blood flow to the blocked artery, smoking cessation counseling and cardiac rehabilitation, among others.
Chest Pain - MI Registry empowers health care provider teams to consistently treat heart attack patients according to the most current, science-based guidelines and establishes a national standard for understanding and improving the quality, safety and outcomes of care provided for patients with coronary artery disease, specifically high-risk heart attack patients.