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Center Granted National Certification as Primary Stroke Center
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March 30, 2007
OKLAHOMA CITY – The INTEGRIS Stroke Center of Oklahoma™ at INTEGRIS Southwest Medical Center has received exciting news from the Joint Commission that it has been granted Disease-Specific Care (DSC) certification as a Primary Stroke Center. There are only 300 in the United States. This certification demonstrates the center’s commitment to excellence and exceptional efforts in fostering evidence-based clinical outcomes by the integration and coordination of quality stroke care.
“Being one of the 300 Primary Stroke Centers in the United States is a step in the right direction for building a coordinated stroke care systems,” says Dr. Pam Forducey, Director of the INTEGRIS Stroke Center of Oklahoma™.
The Joint Commission's Primary Stroke Center Certification program was developed in collaboration with the American Heart and Stroke Association. It is based on the Brain Attack Coalition's "Recommendations for the Establishment of Primary Stroke Centers."
This accomplishment comes on the heels of a comprehensive evaluation and educational review process of disease or condition-specific services done at the center in January of 2007. This on-site review process was based on an assessment of compliance with relevant standards and criteria, the effective use of clinical guidelines and outcomes measurement.
“Studies consistently show that in the US, patients treated in a certified stroke center have improved clinical outcomes and are less likely to wind up in a nursing home and more likely to remain active in their community and raise their grand kids,” says Dr. Charles Morgan, Medical Director of the INTEGRIS Stroke Center of Oklahoma™.
Joint Commission DSC ensures that primary stroke centers possess the following key features: qualifications and competence of practitioners; ongoing efforts to measure and improve processes and outcomes; encouragement of patient self-management; demonstrated leadership support for the program; and use of clinical information systems to monitor patient care management.
Stroke is the nation’s number 3 cause of death and the leading cause of serious long-term disability. Every 45 seconds, someone in America has a stroke. Between 700,000 – 800,000 Americans sustain a stroke annually and 168,000 of them will die. Oklahoma has the 9th highest death rate in the country; Oklahomans’ awareness of stroke is low and prevalence of risk factors is high. 85 Oklahomans suffer a stroke every day.
“Strokes are now treated like heart attacks and require acute intervention and are time dependent,” says Dr. Morgan. “All Oklahomans should realize that stroke is a 9-1-1 emergency and that time is brain.”
The first of its kind in Oklahoma, the INTEGRIS Stroke Center of Oklahoma™ at INTEGRIS Southwest Medical Center offers an innovative and comprehensive process for treating survivors of stroke. The mission is to provide interdisciplinary stroke care to all persons in our communities to include prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with a commitment to excellence, integrity and compassion. This center of excellence encompasses all levels of care from community education to designated "stroke teams" in the Emergency department, Intensive Care unit, Acute Stroke unit and the INTEGRIS Jim Thorpe Rehabilitation Hospital. A team of experts is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to respond to the emergency needs of stroke patients and their caregivers.
For more information, please contact Pam Forducey, Director of INTEGRIS Neurosciences Institute and TeleHealth at (405) 713-4433.
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INTEGRIS Health Corporate Communications
3030 N.W. Expressway
Suite 1620
Oklahoma City, 73112
(405) 951-4826 |
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