USA Health University Hospital earns national recognition for stroke care

USA Health University Hospital earned multiple national accolades from the American Heart Association for its commitment to evidence-based stroke care, according to a release from USA Health.

The Mobile hospital received the following award and designations:

• Get With The Guidelines: Stroke Gold Plus Award
• Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite Plus, Advanced Therapy
• Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

The awards recognize strict adherence to treatment protocols that improve patient outcomes through rapid medical intervention.

The Gold Plus award recognizes performance of 24 consecutive months or more. The Elite Plus and Advanced Therapy designations for the Target: Stroke Honor Roll reflect:

• Door-to-needle times within 45 minutes for at least 75% of applicable patients
• Door-to-needle times within 30 minutes for at least 50% of applicable patients
• Door-to-device times in at least 50% of applicable patients within 90 minutes for direct arriving and within 60 minutes for transfers

National stroke care awards for Mobile hospital

As the first comprehensive stroke center on the upper Gulf Coast, the facility has maintained the Gold Plus award annually since 2011 and the Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite Plus recognition since 2016.

Emily Dahlmann, director of the stroke program, attributed the consistent recognition to systemic collaboration across the entire hospital infrastructure.

“The biggest contributing factor to University Hospital maintaining this prestigious award is the hard work and dedication of all staff members. I have always said that if you have a badge, you are part of the stroke team.”

Emily Dahlmann, RN, SCRN, DNP

Improving stroke treatment times in Alabama

The hospital utilizes the Get With The Guidelines program to track performance benchmarks monthly, focusing heavily on reducing door-to-needle and door-to-device times.

While internal metrics remain strong, the stroke team continues to confront public education hurdles regarding emergency transit, a release from the hospital says. Many residents still choose to drive themselves or family members to the emergency room during a stroke rather than calling an ambulance.

“We hear the community’s concerns about how much an ambulance ride could cost and how some members of the community think they can get their loved one to the hospital faster. However, we explain that EMS can deliver pre-hospital stroke care that will greatly improve their outcomes.”

Emily Dahlmann, RN, SCRN, DNP