LeConte Medical Center Receives Stroke Quality Achievement Award

Sevierville, July 21 2020 ―  LeConte Medical Center has received the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award. The award recognizes LeConte’s commitment to ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines based on the latest scientific evidence.

LeConte Medical Center earned this designation by meeting specific quality achievement measures for the diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients for a designated period. These measures include evaluation of the proper use of medications and other stroke treatments aligned with the most up-to-date, evidence-based guidelines with the goal of speeding recovery and reducing death and disability for stroke patients. Before discharge, patients should also receive education on managing their health and have a follow-up visit scheduled, as well as other care transition interventions.

“I could not be more proud of the LeConte team for earning these designations which demonstrate the excellent care we provide to our patients every day,” said Gaye Jolly, chief administrative officer of LeConte Medical Center. “Our stroke team continues to focus on education and clinical excellence so we can provide the best stroke care to the community we serve.”

LeConte Medical Center additionally received the Association’s Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite award. To qualify for this recognition, hospitals must meet quality measures developed to reduce the time between the patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment with the clot-buster tissue plasminogen activator, or tPA, the only drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat ischemic stroke. 

LeConte Medical Center also received the Association’s Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll award. To qualify for this recognition, hospitals must meet quality measures developed with more than 90 % of compliance for 12 consecutive months for the “Overall Diabetes Cardiovascular Initiative Composite Score.”

LeConte Medical Center is designated as an Advanced Primary Stroke Center, which means the hospital has a dedicated stroke-focused team with qualified medical professionals and staff trained in stroke care. LeConte provides individualized care to meet the needs of their stroke patients, and can often stabilize and successfully treat patients with tPA who do not require surgical intervention for the removal of a blood clot.

According to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, stroke is the No. 5 cause of death and a leading cause of adult disability in the United States. On average, someone in the U.S. suffers a stroke every 40 seconds and nearly 795,000 people suffer a new or recurrent stroke each year.

Learn more about the stroke program at LeConte Medical Center here.