Mary Washington Hospital's Primary Stroke Center Receives Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award

American Heart Association Award recognizes Mary Washington Hospital’s commitment to quality stroke care.

Fredericksburg, VA, August 27, 2020 - Mary Washington Hospital’s Primary Stroke Center has received the 2020 American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award. The award recognizes the hospital’s commitment to ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines based on the latest scientific evidence. Mary Washington Hospital's award-winning Primary Stroke Center has over 10 years of experience and continues to improve its care for stroke patients in our community.

Mary Washington Hospital earned the award by meeting specific quality achievement measures for the diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients at a set level for a designated period. These measures include evaluation of the proper use of medications and other stroke treatments aligned with the most up-to-date, evidence-based guidelines with the goal of speeding recovery and reducing death and disability for stroke patients. Before discharge, patients also receive education on managing their health, get a follow-up visit scheduled, as well as other care transition interventions.

“We are dedicated to improving the quality of care for our stroke patients by implementing the American Heart Association’s Get with The Guidelines-Stroke initiative,” said Arun Chhabra, MD, Medical Director, and Staff Neurologist, Mary Washington Hospital Primary Stroke Center. “The tools and resources provided help us track and measure our success in meeting evidenced-based clinical guidelines developed to improve patient outcomes.”

Mary Washington Hospital additionally received the Association’s Target: StrokeSM Honor Roll award. To qualify for this recognition, hospitals must meet quality measures developed to reduce the time between the patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment with the clot-buster tissue plasminogen activator, or tPA, the only drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat ischemic stroke.

Mary Washington Hospital has also met specific scientific guidelines as a Primary Stroke Center, featuring a comprehensive system for rapid diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients admitted to the emergency department.

“We are pleased to recognize Mary Washington Hospital for their commitment to stroke care,” said Lee H. Schwamm, M.D., national chairperson of the Quality Oversight Committee and Executive Vice-Chair of Neurology, Director of Acute Stroke Services, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts. “Research has shown that hospitals adhering to clinical measures through the Get with The Guidelines quality improvement initiative can often see fewer readmissions and lower mortality rates.”

According to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, stroke is the No. 5 cause of death and a leading cause of adult disability in the United States. On average, someone in the U.S. suffers a stroke every 40 seconds and nearly 795,000 people suffer a new or recurrent stroke each year.

About Mary Washington Healthcare

Mary Washington Healthcare is a fully integrated, regional medical system that provides inpatient and outpatient care through more than 50 facilities and services including Mary Washington Hospital, a 451-bed regional medical center, and Stafford Hospital, a 100-bed community hospital. Mary Washington Healthcare is a not-for-profit health system with a longstanding commitment to providing care regardless of ability to pay. For more information about our services and facilities, please visit mwhc.com.

About Get With The Guidelines®

Get With The Guidelines® is the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines® is the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s hospital-based quality improvement program that provides hospitals with tools and resources to increase adherence to the latest research-based guidelines. Developed with the goal of saving lives and hastening recovery, Get with The Guidelines has touched the lives of more than 9 million patients since 2001. For more information, visit heart.org.