LANCASTER — Antelope Valley Hospital has received full Chest Pain Center (CPC) accreditation from the Society of Cardiovascular Patient Care (SCPC), making it the first facility in the Antelope Valley to achieve this designation. This comes one year after the opening of the Institute for Heart & Vascular Care (IHVC) located on the hospital campus.
“As the first hospital in the area to receive this prestigious accreditation, the AVH team is proud of its unique and extensive expertise in caring for heart attacks and related conditions,” stated Dr. Sameh Gadallah, a cardiologist and medical director of the IHVC. “This accreditation reflects our commitment to providing the most advanced and effective response, treatment and care to patients experiencing chest pain.”
“Chest pain can be the sign of a serious problem that requires immediate attention,” stated Dr. Michael Gertz, an AVH emergency physician. “We want local residents to think of Antelope Valley Hospital at the first sign of chest pain, knowing that we have the expertise and equipment to quickly diagnose their condition and provide life-saving treatment.”
SCPC’s CPC Accreditation process ensures that hospitals meet or exceed an array of stringent criteria and undergo a comprehensive onsite review by a team of specialists. Hospitals that receive CPC Accreditation have achieved a higher level of expertise in dealing with patients who present 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. 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.
Achieving Chest Pain Center accreditation signifies that Antelope Valley Hospital has demonstrated expertise in the following areas:
- Integrating the emergency department with the local emergency medical system.
- Assessing, diagnosing, and treating patients quickly.
- Effectively treating patients at low risk for acute coronary syndrome and no assignable cause for their symptoms.
- Continually seeking to improve processes and procedures.
- Ensuring the competence and training of Accredited Chest Pain Center personnel.
- Maintaining organizational structure and commitment.
- Constructing a functional design that promotes optimal patient care.
- Supporting community outreach programs that educate the public to promptly seek medical care if they display symptoms of a possible heart attack.
“Accreditation as Chest Pain Center is the latest testament to the world-class care patients can expect at Antelope Valley Hospital,” stated Stephanie Herider, RN, BSN, AVH’s cardiovascular clinical coordinator. “Here in the IHVC, we offer the most sophisticated technology and team available anywhere, which means local residents don’t need to leave the Antelope Valley to receive top-notch care.”
In addition to becoming a certified Chest Pain Center, AVH is a STEMI (ST Elevation Myocardial Infarction) Receiving Center, which means it has the training, equipment and processes in place to immediately treat patients experiencing an acute cardiac myocardial infarction (heart attack). It also is an Advanced Primary Stroke Center, which signifies that AVH has the equipment, infrastructure, staff, and training programs needed to provide care based on the most current research and standards to foster better outcomes for patients who have had a stroke.
[Information via news release from Antelope Valley Hospital.]
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