Memorial-Lufkin Earns Award for Outstanding Heart Attack Care

Each year in the United States, nearly 300,000 people suffer from a STEMI, or ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction, the most severe form of heart attack. The highly skilled staff and physicians at Memorial Medical Center-Lufkin have been recognized for achieving an exceptional standard of care when caring for STEMI patients.

Due to Memorial’s commitment to excellence in cardiovascular care, the hospital has been awarded the Mission: Lifeline® Receiving Center- BRONZE Level Recognition Award, presented through the ACTION Registry®-GWTG™. The award recognizes Memorial’s success in implementing a high standard of care for heart attack patients, which means better outcomes for local residents.

A STEMI occurs when a blood clot completely blocks an artery to the heart. To prevent death, it’s critical to immediately restore blood flow, either by surgically opening the blocked vessel or by giving clot-busting medication.

As a “STEMI Receiving Hospital,” Memorial meets high standards of performance in quick and appropriate treatment of STEMI patients to open the blocked artery. Before they are discharged, patients are started on aggressive risk reduction therapies such as cholesterol-lowering drugs, aspirin, ACE inhibitors and beta-blockers and they receive smoking cessation counseling if needed. Hospitals must adhere to these guidelines-based measures at a set level for a designated period of time to be eligible for the achievement awards.

Memorial achieved all of these goals and more with least 85-percent compliance.

“Memorial is dedicated to making our Cardiac Care Facilities among the best in the country, and the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline program is helping us accomplish that by making it easier for our professionals to improve the outcomes of our cardiac patients,” said Dr. Musa Khan, Medical Director of Memorial’s Chest Pain Program. “We are pleased to be recognized for our dedication and achievements in cardiac care, and I am very proud of our team.”

The goal of Mission Lifeline is to commend hospital teams for adhering to guidelines for evidence-based care of heart attack patients, raise awareness of hospitals’ quality of care efforts, and to encourage more healthcare providers to commit to quality care for heart attack patients.