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UPMC Western Maryland Lauded for Cardiac Care

August 25th, 2020 by WCBC Radio

UPMC Western Maryland has received the American College of Cardiology’s NCDR Chest Pain  ̶  MI Registry Gold Performance Achievement Award for 2020, and is one of only 60 hospitals nationwide to receive the honor.

    The award recognizes UPMC Western Maryland’s commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of care for heart attack patients and signifies that UPMC Western Maryland has reached an aggressive goal of treating these patients to standard levels of care as outlined by the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association clinical guidelines and recommendations.

    To receive the Chest Pain  ̶  MI Registry Gold Performance Achievement Award UPMC Western Maryland has demonstrated sustained achievement in the Chest Pain  ̶  MI Registry for two consecutive years (2018 and 2019), and performed at the top level for specific performance measures. Full participation in the registry engages hospitals in a robust quality improvement process using data to drive improvements in adherence to guideline recommendations and overall quality of care provided to heart attack patients.

    “As a Gold Performance Award recipient, UPMC Western Maryland has established itself as a leader in setting the national standard for improving quality of care in patients with acute myocardial infarction,” said Michael C. Kontos, MD, FACC, chair of the NCDR Chest Pain – MI Registry Steering Subcommittee, Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center. “By meeting the award requirements set forth in the registry, UPMC Western Maryland has demonstrated a commitment to providing reliable, comprehensive treatment for heart attack patients based on current clinical guideline recommendations.”

    The Center for Disease Control estimates that almost 700,000 Americans suffer a heart attack each year. A heart attack occurs when a blood clot in a coronary artery partially or completely blocks blood flow to the heart muscle. Treatment guidelines include administering aspirin upon arrival and discharge, timely restoration of blood flow to the blocked artery, smoking cessation counseling and cardiac rehabilitation, among others.

    “At UPMC Western Maryland, our cardiac team is dedicated to providing guideline-based treatments for our heart attack patients, and this award from the ACC reflects our success in this endeavor,” said Christopher Haas, D.O., Chairman of Internal Medicine and Medical Director of Cardiology. “Our team is comprised of local community members whose professional capabilities are on par with, or exceed, national standards. We are truly blessed to have such an incredibly dedicated, and talented, National Award Winning cardiac team right here in Western Maryland.”

    Chest Pain  ̶  MI Registry empowers health care provider teams to consistently treat heart attack patients according to the most current, science-based guidelines and establishes a national standard for understanding and improving the quality, safety and outcomes of care provided for patients with coronary artery disease, specifically high-risk heart attack patients.

    The American College of Cardiology envisions a world where innovation and knowledge optimize cardiovascular care and outcomes. As the professional home for the entire cardiovascular care team, the mission of the College and its 54,000 members is to transform cardiovascular care and to improve heart health. The ACC bestows credentials upon cardiovascular professionals who meet stringent qualifications and leads in the formation of health policy, standards and guidelines. The College also provides professional medical education, disseminates cardiovascular research through its world-renowned JACC Journals, operates national registries to measure and improve care, and offers cardiovascular accreditation to hospitals and institutions. For more, visit acc.org.

4 Responses to “UPMC Western Maryland Lauded for Cardiac Care”

  1. August 25, 2020 at 1:38 pm, mac said:

    UPMC puts out these PR puff pieces and this website prints them verbatim and unedited.
    BUT
    Why has no one looked into the Covid-19 cases that had infected people in that same hospital?
    There has never been any further information forthcoming from them or anyone else.

    Reply

  2. August 25, 2020 at 2:46 pm, David DeWitt said:

    Many thanks to UPMCWM for serving the community with top shelf care. Again.

    Reply

  3. August 25, 2020 at 3:21 pm, Eric said:

    Well isn’t that funny my step daughter just went in the hospital on Wednesday got out Saturday she had chest pain and here she had inflammation of the heart the doctor did nothing and Friday he came in the room and said sorry he doesn’t know what to do for the problem she has that hospital winning a award for the cardiologist working there is a big load of bulls***

    Reply

  4. August 25, 2020 at 5:27 pm, DAVE said:

    Though it was not at UPMC, Dr. Nelson and his team gave me 19 and one half years of life that without modern technology I would not have had. I was number 86. There are not words that can express the gratitude I have for that man, his God given skill and the team that he has put together. In 1961 Johns Hopkins attempted by-pass surgery on my father which was not successful, 40 years later what Hopkins couldn’t do in ‘61, could be done in 2001, in Cumberland. What ever the down falls of our local hospital, I for one thank God for them and the nearly 20 years of life they gave me to enjoy with my lovely wife, children and grandchildren. Cumberland is blessed to have that man at our local hospital! If someone wants to put up a monument to honor someone in Cumberland, my vote is for Dr. Nelson!

    Reply

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