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Press Release Archive (2013)

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Lowell General Hospital Is Recognized for Implementing Quality Cardiac Care

Lowell, MA - Lowell General Hospital was one of 173 hospitals in the United States recognized by the American Heart Association in US News & World Report for its performance achievement in cardiac patient care.

The American Heart Association placed an ad in the July 17 issue of US News & World Report, recognizing hospitals achieving high performance in the AHA's "Get with the Guidelines" program.

"Get with the Guidelines" (GWTG) is a quality-improvement program that helps hospitals ensure that patients consistently receive cardiac care in accordance with the most up-to-date guidelines and recommendations.

"Lowell General Hospital is dedicated to making our patient care for heart patients among the best in the country," said Normand E. Deschene, President and CEO of Lowell General Hospital. "The American Heart Association's GWTG program is helping us accomplish that by making it easier for our staff to improve the quality of care and long-term outcome of our cardiac patients."

Upon meeting specific criteria, hospitals are recognized for performance achievement if at least 85 percent of their cardiac patients (without contraindications) are treated and discharged according to the American Heart Association's guidelines and recommendations. The American Heart Association's ad recognizes Lowell General's commitment and success in performance achievement.

"GWTG is about saving lives, so the American Heart Association wanted to recognize Lowell General Hospital's contribution to quality care in a publication such as US News & World Report, which focused its July issue on the top 100 hospitals," said Gregg C. Fonarow, M.D., American Heart Association volunteer chairman for the national GWTG Steering Committee. "We are proud of Lowell General's efforts for implementing these lifesaving treatments."

About Get With The Guidelines

Get With The Guidelines (GWTG) is the American Heart Association/ American Stroke Association’s hospital-based program designed to ensure that patients are consistently treated and discharged according to evidence-based guidelines for coronary artery disease, heart failure, and stroke. This quality improvement program empowers healthcare teams to save lives and reduce healthcare costs through helping hospitals follow evidence-based guidelines and recommendations for treating coronary artery disease, heart failure, and stroke. Experience has shown that 80,000 lives could be saved annually if the coronary artery disease (GWTG-CAD) module alone of Get With The GuidelinesSM were implemented nationwide. GWTG was the first hospital-based program to receive the prestigious Innovation in Prevention Award from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in 2004. Currently more than 1200 hospitals use one or more GWTG modules. GWTG-CAD is supported by an unrestricted educational grant from the Merck/Schering-Plough Pharmaceutical Partnership and GWTG- Heart Failure is supported by an unrestricted grant from Glaxo Smith Kline, Inc.

For more information, visit americanheart.org/getwiththeguidelines

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