Hospitals that have received SCPC accreditation have achieved a higher level of expertise in dealing with patients who arrive with symptoms of a heart attack. They emphasize the importance of standardized diagnostic and treatment programs that provide more efficient and effective evaluation as well as more appropriate and rapid treatment of patients with chest pain and other heart attack symptoms.
“People tend to wait when they think they might be having a heart attack, and that’s a mistake,” says, Gary Kerr, CEO Memorial Hermann Southwest. “The average patient arrives in the emergency department more than two hours after the onset of symptoms, but what they don’t realize is that the sooner a heart attack is treated, the less damage to the heart and the better the outcome for the patient.”
They also serve as a point of entry into the healthcare system to evaluate and treat other medical problems, and they help to promote a healthier lifestyle in an attempt to reduce the risk factors for heart attack.
To become an Accredited Chest Pain Center, Memorial Hermann Southwest engaged in rigorous evaluation by SCPC for its ability to assess, diagnose, and treat patients who may be experiencing a heart attack. To the community served by Memorial Hermann Southwest, this means that processes are in place that meet strict criteria aimed at:
Reducing the time from onset of symptoms to diagnosis and treatmentTreating patients more quickly during the critical window of time when the integrity of the heart muscle can be preservedMonitoring patients when it is not certain that they are having a heart attack to ensure they are not sent home too quickly or needlessly admitted to the hospitalMemorial Hermann Southwest’s state-of-the-art healthcare encompasses the entire continuum of care for the heart patient and includes such focal points as dispatch, Emergency Medical System, emergency department and a cath lab.
By becoming an Accredited Chest Pain Center, Memorial Hermann Southwest has enhanced the quality of care for the cardiac patient and has demonstrated its commitment to higher standards.
For more information on Memorial Hermann Heart & Vascular Institute-Southwest call (713) 456-5000 or Memorial Hermann Southwest or visit our website.
Cutline: Members of the Memorial Hermann Southwest Care Team. Back Row from left: Alex Colyer Brock; Shari Riley;Robert Burnette, MD; Dolly Varghese; Grace Diaz; Gillian Alexander, CNO; Nancy Yuill; Mario Herrera; Valerie Chukelu; Elaine Presutti; Spencer Mauro; Brian Kern. Front Row from left: Jennifer Lopez; Kacy Rieves; Laura Price; Monique Ryan
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