Wing Implements ‘Guidelines’ Program

ALMER — Wing Memorial Hospital recently announced that it has received recognition from the American Heart Association as a Get With The Guidelines — Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) hospital, making it one of three hospitals in the state to have achieved this recognition. The recognition signifies that Wing Memorial is participating in the American Heart Association’s quality improvement program to reduce the risk of recurrent heart attacks.

Under the program, Wing’s coronary patients are started on aggressive risk reduction therapies such as cholesterol-lowering drugs, aspirin, ACE inhibitors and beta-blockers in the hospital and receive smoking cessation and weight management counseling before being discharged.

“Wing is dedicated to making our cardiac unit among the best in the state and implementing the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines — CAD program will help us accomplish this by making it easier for our physicians and nursing staff to improve the long-term outcome for our cardiac patients,” said Charles E. Cavagnaro, MD, president and CEO.

The American Heart Association program, developed with support from an unrestricted educational grant from Merck & Co., Inc., is being implemented in hospitals around the country. For more information on Get With The GuidelinesSM, visit americanheart.org/getwiththeguidelines, or call Wing Memorial Hospital’s performance improvement department at 284-5297.