Gold Cross Ambulance receives inaugural award from American Heart Association
Ambulance service is recognized for outstanding care of heart attack patients
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 19, 2014
Bottom Line Marketing & Public Relations
Beth Fredrickson
(414) 270-3000, ext. 224
bfredrickson@blmpr.com
MENASHA, Wis. – Gold Cross Ambulance Service will receive the American Heart Association’s (AHA) first-ever Mission: Lifeline STEMI Systems of Care EMS Silver Level Recognition Award this week in a special ceremony at Gold Cross. Collaboration among pre-hospital and hospital providers is the essence of Mission: Lifeline, and the AHA recognizes the vital importance EMS providers bring to the overall success of Mission: Lifeline.
Code STEMI (ST Elevation Myocardial Infarction) is the process to treat all heart attack patients within the first 90 minutes of an attack. ST refers to the ST segment—the portion of the EKG that is looked at. Myocardial infarction, or MI, is the clinical term for heart attacks. Every year, almost 300,000 people experience a STEMI, a type of heart attack caused by a complete blockage of blood flow to the heart. It requires timely treatment. To prevent death, it’s critical to restore blood flow as quickly as possible, either by surgically opening the blocked vessel or by giving clot-busting medication.
“This is a wonderful national recognition of what our paramedics and EMTs work so hard for every day,” said Samantha Hilker, paramedic, staff development manager and clinical educator with Gold Cross Ambulance Service. “This award confirms our team is putting our mission and vision into practice on each and every call, and we can see the positive impact on our patients and their lives.”
The Mission: Lifeline award recognizes Gold Cross’s STEMI program/protocol, a cooperative effort among Affinity Health System, ThedaCare and Gold Cross. The EMS protocols and procedures were a combined effort designed to complement the protocols and processes used by both health systems, and make the treatment the patient needs more effective and efficient.
This partnership allows Gold Cross providers to rapidly identify the STEMI, promptly notify the hospital and trigger an early response from the awaiting emergency personnel. Both Affinity and ThedaCare cardiologists assist Gold Cross with education and training to keep paramedics on the cutting edge of STEMI care. The emergency department physicians and cardiologists trust Gold Cross paramedics to diagnose STEMI in the field based on EKG interpretation, patient history and assessment findings.
“The main goal of the STEMI program is to get the patient from their living room to the cath lab without stopping in the ER unless absolutely necessary,” said Julie Ludwig, Chest Pain Center coordinator at ThedaCare’s Appleton Medical Center. “This includes calling in the entire cath lab team at 3 a.m. if necessary.”
Gold Cross paramedics are always learning. The Chest Pain Center coordinators and chest pain teams at both hospitals include Gold Cross’s Hilker in case reviews so she can share the feedback with the crews on the scene, highlight what Gold Cross does really well, and identify areas of improvement.
“It’s important to assess each case after it happens so we can continue to improve,” said Jennifer Szczytko, Chest Pain Center coordinator at Affinity Health System. “Gold Cross Ambulance is part of our team. Our door- to-balloon time is lower than the industry average and we attribute that to the pre-hospital care the paramedics provide prior to arriving at our door.”
Katie Sahajpal, director of quality and systems improvement at the AHA, will present the award Wed., May 21, at 11 a.m., at Gold Cross Ambulance Service, 1055 Wittman Dr., Menasha. The presentation will be made in conjunction with the celebration of the 40th dedicated to recognizing and celebrating EMS practitioners serving communities across the nation.
Gold Cross Ambulance provides paramedic-level care for 911 medical emergencies, and non-emergency transport services to more than 260,000 people in 1,200 square miles of portions of Outagamie, Winnebago, Calumet and Waupaca counties, responding to more than 15,000 calls each year. It also brings EMS expertise to the region through its management services, making it the only not-for-profit, regional ambulance service in the state. Gold Cross Ambulance is jointly owned by Affinity Health System and ThedaCare. To learn more about Gold Cross Ambulance: visit www.goldcross.org
About Mission: Lifeline
The American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline® program helps hospitals and emergency medical services develop systems of care that follow proven standards and procedures for STEMI patients. The program works by mobilizing teams across the continuum of care to implement American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology clinical treatment guidelines. For more information, visit heart.org/missionlifeline and heart.org/quality. A complete list of awardees can be found here.
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