ALBEMARLE ó Stanly Regional Medical Center has earned the Gold Seal of Approval from the Joint Commission and is now designated as a certified primary stroke center.
Stanly Regional earned this distinction after the Joint Commission conducted an on-site review in April.
“Stanly Regional demonstrated that its stroke care program follows national standards and guidelines that can significantly improve outcomes for stroke patients,” says Jean E. Range, executive director for disease-specific care certification of the Joint Commission.
Each year about 700,000 people experience a new or recurrent stroke, which is the nation’s third leading cause of death. On average, someone suffers a stroke every 45 second and someone dies of a stroke every 3.1 minutes. Stroke is a leading cause of serious, long-term disability in the U.S., with about 4.7 million stroke survivors alive today.
“We are very proud to achieve the distinction,” Stanly Regional President and CEO Al Taylor said in a press release. “Joint Commission Primary Stroke Center Certification recognizes our organization’s commitment to providing outstanding care to our patients and our community. I am so proud of our staff for all of the hard work they have devoted to this effort.”
The Joint Commission’s primary stroke center certification is based on the recommendations for primary stroke centers published by the Brain Attack Coalition and the American Stroke Association’s statements/guidelines for stroke care. The Joint Commission launched the program ó the nation’s first ó in 2003. A list of programs certified by the Joint Commission is available at the agency’s Web site, www.jointcommission.org.
“The administration and staff at Stanly Regional have committed the resources, energy, and time to improving outcomes for a condition that disproportionately affects the lives of all of us who live in the stroke belt,” says Dr. David Schmidt, a board-certified neurologist with Stanly Neurology. “The population served by this regional medical center should be comforted in knowing that they have a better chance of a good outcome by being treated here than in many other areas with larger facilities.”
An independent, nonprofit agency, the Joint Commission evaluates and accredits more then 15,000 health care organizations and programs in the United States, including more than 8,000 hospitals and home-care organizations, and more than 6,800 other health-care organizations that provide long-term care, assisted living, behavioral health care, laboratory and ambulatory care services.
In addition, the Joint Commission provides certification of disease-specific care programs, primary stroke centers, and health-care staffing services.
Founded in 1951, the Joint Commission is the nation’s oldest and largest standards-setting and accrediting body in health care.