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ST. LOUIS - Mercy’s commitment to providing high-quality stroke care has earned national recognition for all of its hospital in the St. Louis metro area.
The American Heart Association has awarded its 2022 Get with the Guidelines – Stroke Gold Plus award to all five hospitals - Mercy Hospital Jefferson, Mercy Hospital Lincoln, Mercy Hospital South, Mercy Hospital St. Louis and Mercy Hospital Washington. Additional designations of Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite Plus, Advanced Therapy and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll were given to Mercy South and Mercy St. Louis. Mercy Jefferson and Mercy Washington also received Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll.
Stroke is the fifth leading cause of death and a leading cause of disability in the U.S. A stroke occurs when a clot blocks a blood vessel to the brain or a blood vessel bursts, which prevents the needed oxygen from reaching the brain.
To earn Get With The Guidelines - Stroke designation, a hospital must show its commitment to ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment following national recognized, research-based guidelines, which saves lives and reduces disabilities. They also educate patients to help them manage their health and recovery at home.
“Regardless which Mercy hospital stroke patients are brought to, they and their loved ones can feel confident they are receiving the same high level stroke care that has been proven to save lives,” said Dr. Nida Jamal, Mercy Clinic neurologist and stroke medical director at Mercy Hospital St. Louis. “We are able to combine our experiences to learn and improve our best practices for stroke care.”
“Having all five of our St. Louis area hospitals able to provide this level of care is vital to our community,” said Dr. Maheen Malik, neurologist and stroke medical director at Mercy Hospital South. “For stroke patients, every second counts. Time is brain, so getting the patient to the needed treatment as quickly as possible is important.”
To earn the Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite and Elite Plus award, Mercy had to meet specific criteria that reduce the time between an eligible patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment with the clot-busting medication alteplase.
To earn the Advanced Therapy award, Mercy had to meet specific criteria that reduce the time between an eligible patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment to remove the clot causing the stroke known as a thrombectomy.
To earn the Target: Type 2 Honor Roll award, Mercy had to demonstrate it aims to ensure patients with Type 2 diabetes, who might be at higher risk for complications, receive the most up-to-date, evidence-based care when hospitalized due to stroke.
In addition to these awards, Mercy South earned Comprehensive Stroke Center designation from The Joint Commission. Mercy Hospital St. Louis has earned Advanced Thrombectomy-Capable Stroke Center designation by The Joint Commission. Both facilities are designated Level 1 Stroke Center in Missouri as designated by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services Time Critical Diagnosis.
