BMC Recognized for Heart-failure Care and Resuscitation
PITTSFIELD — Berkshire Medical Center (BMC) has received the Get with the Guidelines – Heart Failure Gold-Plus Quality Achievement Award for implementing specific quality-improvement measures outlined by the American Heart Assoc. and the American College of Cardiology Foundation secondary prevention guidelines for heart-failure patients.
In addition, BMC has received the Get with the Guidelines – Resuscitation Silver Quality Achievement Award for implementing specific quality-improvement measures outlined by the American Heart Assoc. for the treatment of patients who suffer cardiac arrests in the hospital.
This marks the eighth year that BMC has been recognized with a quality-achievement award for heart failure, and its first Silver recognition for Resuscitation.
Get with the Guidelines – Heart Failure is a quality-improvement program that helps hospital teams provide the most up-to-date, research-based guidelines with the goal of speeding recovery and reducing hospital readmissions for heart-failure patients.
BMC earned the award by meeting specific quality-achievement measures for the diagnosis and treatment of heart-failure patients at a set level for a designated period. These measures include proper use of medications and aggressive risk-reduction therapies such as cholesterol-lowering drugs, beta blockers, ACE inhibitors, aspirin, diuretics, and anticoagulants while patients are in the hospital. Before patients are discharged, they also receive education on managing their heart failure and overall health, as well as referrals for cardiac rehabilitation.
BMC also received the association’s Target: Heart Failure Honor Roll. Target: Heart Failure is an initiative that provides hospitals with educational tools, prevention programs, and treatment guidelines developed to reduce the risk of heart-failure patients ending up back in the hospital. Hospitals are required to meet criteria that improves medication adherence, provides early follow-up care and coordination, and enhances patient education. The goal is to reduce hospital readmissions and help patients improve their quality of life in managing this chronic condition.
According to the American Heart Assoc., about 5.1 million people suffer from heart failure. Each year, 670,000 new cases are diagnosed, and more than 275,000 people will die of heart failure. However, many heart-failure patients can lead a full life when their condition is managed with proper medications and devices and with healthy lifestyle changes.
The Get with the Guidelines – Resuscitation program was developed with the goal of saving the lives of those who experience cardiac arrests through consistently following the most up-to-date, research-based guidelines for treatment. Guidelines include following protocols for patient safety, medical emergency team response, effective and timely resuscitation (CPR), and post-emergency care. More than 200,000 adults and children have an in-hospital cardiac arrest each year, according to the American Heart Assoc.
Specifically, BMC was honored for meeting specific measures in treating adult cardiac-arrest patients. To qualify for the awards, hospitals must demonstrate compliance with these performance measures at a set level for a designated period.
