Joint Commission, AHA-Accredited Stroke Program for the Region

Thursday, March 9, 2017
Joint Commission, AHA-Accredited Stroke Program for the Region

Amarillo, TX—The Primary Stroke Center at Northwest Texas Healthcare Center is proud to be recertified by The Joint Commission; it is the first Primary Stroke Center in Amarillo. Northwest is pleased to be participating in the voluntary Get with the Guidelines®-Stoke program established by the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association to support better patient outcomes. This is a tribute to the dedication to provide the highest level of patient care. It also offers hospitals tools and resources to promote best practices and provides performance feedback to encourage continuous improvement. We were also recognized as a High Performing Hospital for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and heart failure by U.S. News and World Report for 2016-2017.

Additionally, Northwest is reaching out to the region through our telestroke program. This program provides instant access for a consultation with specialists remotely, leading to faster diagnosis and treatment for our patients 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Stroke specialists use two-way interactive video conferencing to assist hospitals when a patient presents in the emergency department with stroke-like symptoms. With this type of "on demand" acute stroke expertise, patients can be given a clot-busting drug like tPA more quickly, which has been proven to reduce disability in patients with ischemic stroke.

"Northwest offers local physicians in the Panhandle region the ability to consult about a stroke patient's care in real time, ask questions and receive advice from stroke experts in a matter of minutes," says Mark Crawford, CEO of Northwest. "Thus, wherever you live in the Panhandle, you can be sure to receive the best emergency stroke care at Northwest!"