CONWAY-(August 12, 2020) — Conway Regional Medical Center has received the Mission: Lifeline^® Silver Plus Receiving Quality Achievement Award for implementing specific quality improvement measures outlined by the American Heart Association for the treatment of patients who suffer severe heart attacks.

Every year, more than 250,000 people experience an ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), the deadliest type of heart attack, caused by a blockage of blood flow to the heart that requires timely treatment. To prevent death, it’s critical to restore blood flow as quickly as possible, either by mechanically opening the blocked vessel or by providing clot-busting medication.
The American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline program’s goal is to reduce system barriers to prompt treatment for heart attacks, beginning with the 9-1-1 call, to EMS transport, and continuing through hospital treatment and discharge. The initiative provides tools, training and other resources to support heart attack care following protocols from the most recent evidence-based treatment guidelines.

Conway Regional earned the award by meeting specific criteria and standards of performance for quick and appropriate treatment through emergency procedures to re-establish blood flow to blocked arteries in heart attack patients coming into the hospital directly or by transfer from another facility.

“Conway Regional is dedicated to improving the quality of care for our patients who suffer a heart attack, and the American Heart Association’s Mission Lifeline program is helping us accomplish that goal through nationally respected clinical guidelines,” said  Paula Weatherley, Director of Cardiovascular Services at Conway Regional. “We are pleased to be recognized for our dedication and achievements in cardiac care, and I am very proud of not only our in house team, but the extended team including referring facilities, and EMS Personnel who make this achievement possible.”

One of the major criteria in achieving the award is consistently averaging a door to treatment time that is less than 90 minutes. This rating refers to the time between contact with medical personnel (including the EMS medics) and treating the patient for a heart attack. During that time, Conway Regional’s treatment time was 55.11 minutes, averaged over 2019.

Don Steely, MD, an interventional cardiologist with the Conway Regional Cardiovascular Clinic, said the Conway Regional heart team is to be celebrated for their ongoing efforts to improve heart attack response time.

“This is a total team effort in Conway. Our heart team relies on EMS personnel’s transmission of EKG reports to the hospital while they are onsite or in route, as well as our emergency department and our cardiac cath lab team responding as quickly as possible,” said Steely. “This gives our patients the best option for timely treatment in a race against time.”

Tim Henry, MD, Chair of the Mission: Lifeline Acute Coronary Syndrome Subcommittee, added, “We commend Conway Regional Medical Center for this award in recognition for following evidence-based guidelines for timely heart attack treatment. We applaud the significant institutional commitment to their critical role in the system of care for quickly and appropriately treating heart attack patients.”