Chester County Hospital (CCH) received the HeartCARE Center National Distinction of Excellence designation from The American College of Cardiology (ACC) for its demonstrated commitment to comprehensive, high-quality culture and cardiovascular care. CCH was one of the first four hospitals in the country to receive this honor. “This HeartCARE Center recognition reflects several aspects of cardiovascular care,” said Timothy J. Boyek, MD, medical director of Cardiac Diagnostic Interventional Catheterization Laboratories.
To receive the HeartCARE designation, both the Chest Pain Center and Cardiac Cath Lab at CCH had to have accredited programs through the ACC and implement targeted quality improvement campaigns.
For example, the Chest Pain Center educates the public to recognize and react to the early symptoms of a possible heart attack. Through specific protocols, its physicians are able to better reduce the time to treatment during the critical early stages of a heart attack and better monitor patients when it is not clear whether or not they are having a coronary event.
CCH’s Cardiac Cath Lab implemented a pre-Cardiac Catheterization Screening Tool to assess most patients’ risk of bleeding and contrast-induced nephropathy (CIN) ahead of their catheterizations. (It’s not used in emergency situations.) “The contrast agents used in a catheterization can be harmful to the kidneys. Those who have had a heart attack or who have diabetes or a pre-existing renal disease are more susceptible than most,” said Tim Martin, manager business operations of the Cardiovascular laboratory. “If these risk factors are overlooked or not fully accounted for, the contrast could impair renal function, the condition that defines CIN.” The lowered risk-adjusted rate has placed CCH near the 90th percentile in the National Cardiovascular Data Registry CathPCI Registry Quarterly Outcomes Report.