For the fifth year in a row, E.W. Sparrow Hospital and its Comprehensive Stroke Center has received the highest level of recognition for stroke care nationally and, for only the second time, we have been honored for our care of Type 2 diabetes patients who have had strokes.
The Stroke Center has been honored by the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association with the Get with the Guidelines®-Stroke GOLD PLUS achievement award and Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite Plus for performance during 2021. Sparrow’s diabetes program has been recognized with the AHA/ASA’s Get with the Guidelines® Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll.
These awards mean Sparrow meets the rigid standards set by the Get with the Guidelines® initiative and that we provide the most up-to-date treatment, with improved care and outcomes.
Stroke is the number five 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.
Get With The Guidelines® puts the expertise of the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association to work for hospitals nationwide, helping ensure patient care is aligned with the latest research- and evidence-based guidelines.
To qualify for the Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite Plus award hospitals must meet specific criteria that reduce the time between a patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment with the clot-buster drug, alteplase.
The hospital also received the American Heart Association’s Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll, which aims to ensure patients with Type 2 diabetes, who might be at higher risk for complications, receive the most up-to-date, evidence-based care when hospitalized due to stroke.
Stroke and specifically stroke care for diabetes patients are critical healthcare issues in our community. To achieve the stroke and diabetes awards, hospitals are assessed based on such factors as the proper use of medications and utilization of the latest treatments of care.
Sparrow is the region’s only hospital to be designated as a Certified Comprehensive Stroke Center by The Joint Commission. The designation – given to an elite network of facilities nationwide – recognizes centers that make exceptional efforts toward delivering the best care possible to "complex stroke" patients. For more information about the Sparrow Stroke Center, go to Sparrow.org/StrokeCenter.
