Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center and St. Luke’s Health – The Woodlands Hospital receive the Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award

HOUSTON (August 1, 2018) – Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center  and St. Luke's Health – The Woodlands Hospital have received the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award. The award recognizes the hospitals' commitment to ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines based on the latest scientific evidence.

"We are honored to receive these esteemed awards from such renowned organizations in cardiovascular care," said Dr. Doug Lawson, PhD, CEO, CHI Texas Division. "Our hospitals are setting the standard for delivering compassionate, informed and dedicated care to stroke patients." 

Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center  and St. Luke's Health – The Woodlands Hospital earned the award by meeting specific quality achievement measures for the diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients. These measures include evaluating the proper use of medications and other stroke treatments aligned with the latest evidence-based guidelines with the goal of speeding recovery and reducing death and disability for stroke patients. Before discharge, patients should also be educated on managing their health, schedule a follow-up visit and receive other care transition interventions.

“We are pleased to recognize Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center  and St. Luke's Health – The Woodlands Hospital for their commitment to stroke care,” said Eric E. Smith, M.D., national chairman of the Get With The Guidelines Steering Committee and an associate professor of neurology at the University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada. “Research has shown that hospitals adhering to clinical measures through the Get With The Guidelines quality improvement initiative can often see fewer readmissions and lower mortality rates.”

According to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, stroke is the No. 5 cause of death and a leading cause of adult disability in the United States. On average, someone in the U.S. suffers a stroke every 40 seconds and nearly 795,000 people suffer a new or recurrent stroke each year.

About Catholic Health Initiatives

St. Luke’s Health is a part of Catholic Health Initiatives (CHI), one of the nation’s largest health systems. Headquartered in Englewood, Colorado, CHI operates in 17 states and comprises 100 hospitals, including three academic health centers and major teaching hospitals; 30 critical-access facilities; community health-services organizations; accredited nursing colleges; home-health agencies; and other facilities and services that span the inpatient and outpatient continuum of care. Learn more at CatholicHealthInitiatives.com.

About the CHI Texas Division

The CHI Texas Division, a member of Catholic Health Initiatives (CHI), is comprised of three markets―CHI St. Luke’s Health (St. Luke’s) is home of the Texas Heart® Institute (THI),  eight hospitals, eight emergency centers, Diagnostic & Treatment Center, Radiation & CyberKnife® Center, and numerous Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Group locations throughout Greater Houston; St. Luke’s Health Memorial (three hospitals and a long-term acute care facility in East Texas); and St. Joseph Health (five hospitals and several St. Joseph Medical Group locations across Brazos Valley). In addition, St. Luke’s is a part of a joint venture agreement with Baylor College of Medicine®, which encompasses Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center, the flagship facility and academic medical center of St. Luke’s, in the Texas Medical Center.  Together, St. Luke’s, THI, and Baylor College of Medicine are transforming healthcare delivery with a mission to usher in a new era of healthcare to create healthier communities. For more information, visit CHITX.org.

About St. Luke's Health – The Woodlands Hospital

The Woodlands Hospital provides high quality, compassionate care for residents of The Woodlands and surrounding areas. It is a 242-bed hospital that offers the latest in diagnostic, medical and surgical services, including cardiology, neurosciences and stroke care, orthopedics, bariatric, wound care, rehabilitation, surgery, women's health and emergency care.

About Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center

Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center is an 881-bed quaternary care academic medical center that is a joint venture between Baylor College of Medicine and St. Luke’s Health. Located in the Texas Medical Center, the hospital is the home of the Texas Heart® Institute, a world-class cardiovascular research and education institution founded in 1962 by Denton A. Cooley, MD—consistently ranked as one of the nation’s best in Cardiovascular Services & Heart Surgery. The hospital was the first facility in Texas and the Southwest designated a Magnet® hospital for Nursing Excellence by the American Nurses Credentialing Center, receiving the award four consecutive times. Baylor St. Luke’s also has three community emergency centers offering adult and pediatric care for the Greater Houston area.

About Get With The Guidelines®

Get With The Guidelines® is the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s hospital-based quality improvement program that provides hospitals with tools and resources to increase adherence to the latest research-based guidelines. Developed with the goal of saving lives and hastening recovery, Get With The Guidelines has touched the lives of more than 6 million patients since 2001. For more information, visit heart.org.

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