Lehigh Valley Health Network Earns Top Recognition for Stroke Care

Five Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN) hospitals recently were recognized by the American Heart Association’s (AHA) Get With the Guidelines program.

Hospitals that qualify for this award must demonstrate a commitment to making continuous improvements and using advanced, research-based guidelines to provide high-quality stroke care. This includes being prepared to treat stroke cases quickly, effectively and at any time of day. Hospitals must also meet specific criteria that reduces the time between a patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment with the clot-busting drug alteplase when necessary. 

“Being recognized with this award lets our community know LVHN provides the highest quality of stroke care,” says Yevgeniy Isayev, MD, Medical Director of Stroke Centers LVH–Cedar Crest and LVH–Muhlenberg. “Our stroke teams are well-prepared and have extensive knowledge, training and tools that can give patients with stroke the best chance of survival and recovery.”

Along with following treatment guidelines, Get With The Guidelines participants also provide patients with education to help them manage health and recovery at home.

LVH–Cedar Crest – Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold Plus Award
Target: Stroke Elite Honor Roll
Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll
Target: Stroke Advanced Therapy Honor Roll

LVH–Muhlenberg – Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold Plus Award
Target: Stroke Honor Roll
Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

LVH–Hazleton – Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold Plus Award
Target: Stroke Elite Honor Roll
Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

LVH–Schuylkill – Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold Plus Award
Target: Stroke Honor Roll
Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

LVH–Pocono – Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold Plus Award
Target: Stroke Elite Honor Roll
Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

Hospitals that earn Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll can effectively treat patients with stroke who might be at higher risk for complications from diabetes. This designation means patients with diabetes will receive the most up-to-date, evidence-based care when hospitalized due to stroke.

Stroke^SM Honor Roll Advanced Therapy award recipients must meet specific criteria to reduce the time between an eligible patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment to remove the clot causing the stroke.

“We are incredibly pleased to recognize Lehigh Valley Health Network for its commitment to caring for patients with stroke,” said Steven Messe, MD, Volunteer Chairperson of the American Heart Association Stroke System of Care Advisory Group and professor of neurology and director of fellowships of neurology at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. “Participation in Get With The Guidelines is associated with improved patient outcomes, fewer readmissions and lower mortality rates – a win for health care systems, families and communities.”

Stroke is the fifth leading cause of death and a leading cause of disability in the U.S.  A stroke occurs when a blood vessel that carries oxygen and nutrients to the brain is either blocked by a clot or bursts. When that happens, part of the brain cannot get the blood and oxygen it needs, so brain cells die.

Early stroke detection and treatment are key to improving survival, minimizing disability and accelerating recovery times. Studies show when clinicians consistently follow treatment guidelines patients have better recoveries.

LVH–Cedar Crest is a certified Comprehensive Stroke Center by the Joint Commission. This means there are designated stroke facilities that provide around-the-clock care to patients. There is also a neuroscience intensive care unit and a rehabilitation unit, giving patients access to excellent care from the beginning stages of a stroke to recovery, all in one location. The facilities are staffed by a team of doctors, nurses and health care specialists who receive extra training to treat the most severe stroke cases.

Lehigh Valley Hospital–Muhlenberg, Lehigh Valley Hospital–Hazleton, Lehigh Valley Hospital–Schuylkill and Lehigh Valley Hospital–Pocono are all certified Primary Stroke Centers by The Joint Commission. A Primary Stroke Center is a hospital that has developed special procedures to rapidly diagnose and treat a stroke emergency.