The six Providence medical centers across the Los Angeles Area were recognized this week by the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines – Stroke achievement awards program for quality patient outcomes.

Providence Little Company of Mary San Pedro Medical Center, with the first Primary Stroke Center in the South Bay, earned the highest achievement for the seventh straight year – the Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award. Providence Saint Joseph in Burbank, Providence Holy Cross in Mission Hills and Providence Tarzana medical centers also earned Gold Plus.

In Santa Monica, Providence Saint John’s Health Center, which opened its stroke program just 10 months ago, and Providence Little Company of Mary Medical Center Torrance earned the Silver Plus Quality Achievement Award for stroke care. The Torrance hospital also was awarded for achievements in treating heart failure.

Additionally, all six hospitals were named to the associations’ honor roll, with Providence Saint Joseph, the hub of Providence Southern California’s stroke telemedicine program, and Providence Saint John’s added to the Elite Plus Honor Roll.

“This is excellent news for our patients – especially as the populations in many of our communities are aging and more at risk of stroke,” said Michael Bernstein, M.D., regional chief medical officer of Providence St. Joseph Health’s Los Angeles Region. “Much of the credit for our success in treating stroke goes to our emergency department teams, but also to collaboration among our stroke specialists, many of whom are available through our telestroke program, any time, any place.”

The awards recognize the hospitals’ commitment to and success in implementing excellent care for stroke patients by ensuring they receive treatment that meets nationally accepted, evidence-based standards and recommendations, according to the guidelines. A Heart Association study shows stroke patients treated at hospitals participating in the national Get With The Guidelines – Stroke program were more likely to be discharged home and less likely to die after discharge than patients in non-participating hospital.

The awards go to hospitals that adhere to Get with the Guidelines indicators consistently and succeed in complying with recommended measures in treating stroke. These measures include aggressive use of medications, such as tPA, antithrombotics, anticoagulation therapy, DVT prophylaxis, cholesterol reducing drugs and smoking cessation, all aimed at reducing death and disability and improving the lives of stroke patients.

“Get With The Guidelines – Stroke uses the “teachable moment,” the time soon after a patient has had a stroke, when they are most likely to listen to and follow their health care professionals’ guidance. Studies demonstrate that patients who are taught how to manage their risk factors while still in the hospital reduce their risks of a second heart attack or stroke.

Primary Stroke Center Certification recognizes hospitals that meet standards to support better outcomes for stroke care. Eligibility standards include:

a dedicated stroke-focused program
staffing by qualified medical professionals trained in stroke care
individualized care to meet stroke patients’ needs
patient involvement in their hospital care
coordination of post-discharge patient self-care based on recommendations of the Brain Attack Coalition and guidelines published by the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association or equivalent guidelines
streamlined flow of patient information while protecting patient rights, security and privacy
collection of the hospital’s stroke-treatment performance data
hospital team performance data
use of data to assess and continually improve quality of care for stroke patients