STAFF REPORT
Seton Medical Center Hays was recognized this month by the American Heart Association for its commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of care for heart attack patients and improving the survival of “STEMI” patients.
STEMI (segment elevation myocardial infarction) heart attacks are rare, but they are the deadliest type of heart attack. It results from a clot in the coronary artery. When a patient has such a heart attack, emergency catheterization or angioplasty can open up the blocked artery and restore blood flow to the heart.
Seton Hays won the heart association’s Mission: Lifeline Bronze Quality Achievement Award by demonstrating for 90 consecutive days that at least 85 percent of eligible STEMI patients were treated within 90 minutes and discharged following the heart association’s recommended treatment guidelines. Seton Hays was the only hospital in Hays County to win a heart association award.
“Seton Hays opened less than two years ago but already has been able to accomplish this milestone because of its talented and dedicated physicians and associates,” said Herb Dyer, Seton Hays vice president and chief operating officer. “We are committed to becoming a center of excellence for STEMI treatment, which is representative of Seton Healthcare Family’s reputation for providing the best clinical care in Central Texas.”
Throughout Texas, 150 hospitals have cardiac catheter labs for STEMI patients. Of them, 77 are submitting data to the national registry, a requirement to be considered for a Mission: Lifeline award. The data collected provides valuable research and aids in educating clinicians nationally.
Seton Hays’ next step is to maintain Silver Performance Achievement status for 12 consecutive months. This year, Seton Medical Center Austin was the only Central Texas hospital to win a silver award.
Seton Hays, Seton Austin and University Medical Center Brackenridge in Austin, which also won a bronze award, will be listed in a five-page American Heart Association advertisement in U.S. News and World Report’s August print edition.
