Mercy Medical Center honored with Mission: Lifeline Gold Receiving Achievement Award from the American Heart Association

Mercy Medical Center has received the Mission: Lifeline® Gold Receiving Quality Achievement Award for implementing specific quality improvement measures outlined by the American Heart Association for the treatment of patients who suffer severe heart attacks.

Every year, more than 250,000 people experience an ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), the deadliest type of heart attack, caused by a blockage of blood flow to the heart that requires timely treatment. To prevent death, it’s critical to restore blood flow as quickly as possible, either by mechanically (balloon or stent) opening the blocked vessel or by providing clot-busting medication.

The American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline program’s goal is to reduce system barriers to prompt treatment for heart attacks, beginning with the 9-1-1 call, to EMS transport and continuing through hospital treatment and discharge. The initiative provides tools, training and other resources to support heart attack care following protocols from the most recent evidence-based treatment guidelines.

“Mercy is dedicated to improving the quality of care for our heart attack patients, and the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline program is helping us accomplish that goal through nationally recognized clinical guidelines,” said Dr. Ahmed Sabe, president, The Heart Hospital at Mercy Medical Center. “We are pleased to be recognized for our dedication and achievements in cardiac care, and I am very proud of our team.”

Mercy earned the award by meeting specific criteria and standards of performance for quick and appropriate treatment through emergency procedures to re-establish blood flow to blocked arteries in heart attack patients coming into the hospital directly or by transfer from another facility.

“We commend Mercy Medical Center for this award in recognition for following evidence-based guidelines for timely heart attack treatment,” said Tim Henry, M.D., Chair of the Mission: Lifeline Acute Coronary Syndrome Subcommittee. “We applaud the significant institutional commitment to their critical role in the system of care for quickly and appropriately treating heart attack patients.”

About Mercy Heart Center
Mercy Medical Center has a history of pioneering excellence in heart care. Nationally recognized as a heart care leader, the impressive lists of “Firsts” include the world’s first angioplasty performed in an emergency department, the nation’s first Accredited Chest Pain Center and Stark County’s first Chest Pain Center certified to perform angioplasty 24/7. Mercy Emergency Chest Pain Center is home to a Cardiac Catheterization Lab where door-to-balloon angioplasty has been performed in less than five minutes. This cath lab allows Mercy to dramatically reduce the time between heart attack and life-saving angioplasty. Mercy has received the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline® Gold Level Award five consecutive times since 2012, including two GOLD PLUS awards; has been named a Top 50 Heart Hospital in the US for six years by Truven Health Analytics; and has earned the American College of Cardiology Foundation’s Platinum Performance Achievement Award twice.

About Mercy Medical Center
Mercy Medical Center, a ministry of the Sisters of Charity Health System, operates a 476-bed hospital serving Stark, Carroll, Wayne, Holmes and Tuscarawas Counties and parts of Southeastern Ohio. It has 620 members on its Medical Staff and employs 2,500 people. Mercy operates outpatient health centers in Alliance, Carroll County, Jackson Township, Lake Township, Louisville, Massillon, North Canton, Plain Township and Tuscarawas County. A Catholic hospital, Mercy Medical Center upholds the mission and philosophy of the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine and continues to be responsive to the needs of the community. For more information, see cantonmercy.org.