Marin General Hospital Receives Chest Pain Center Accreditation
GREENBRAE, CA — Marin General Hospital has become the first hospital in Marin County to receive full Accreditation with PCI (percutaneous coronary intervention) from the Society of Chest Pain Centers (SCPC) for its treatment of acute coronary syndrome (ACS).
Dr. Brian Strunk, Division Chief of Cardiology, who led the not-for-profit hospital’s accreditation process, said, “Marin General Hospital, the only hospital in Marin with a comprehensive cardiac care program, has for many years performed in the top 10th percentile nationally of hospitals in treating heart attack patients. This is based on data collected by the American College of Cardiology National Cardiac Data Registry (ACC-NCDR.) But we felt it was critical to assure our patients of the highest standards in evaluating and treating patients who arrive with symptoms of a possible heart attack. To receive the designation, we spent hundreds of hours to demonstrate we could meet stringent standards for effective ACS care and that processes are in place to significantly reduce patient mortality.”
Louis Manila, Director of the Haynes Cardiovascular Institute at Marin General Hospital, said, "The investment in training and workshops to achieve compliance with American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association (ACH/AHA) guidelines for patient care was well worth it. It’s gratifying to physicians and staff alike to know that we are saving lives through evidence-based improvements to care."
Marin General Hospital is one of only 21 fully accredited Chest Pain Centers in California. Accreditation with PCI means the hospital meets national standards to rapidly assess and treat patients, using cardiac catheterization as an alternative to medication to eliminate blood vessel blockage that caused the heart attack and to reestablish flow to prevent damage to the heart. The designation denotes facilities that utilize standardized diagnostic and treatment programs to improve evaluation and speed up the effective administration of treatment to chest pain patients.
According to Dr. Jim Dietz, Medical Director of Emergency Trauma at Marin General Hospital, the work of a Chest Pain Center encompasses far more than the period from when patients dial ‘911’ until they are discharged from the hospital. “The goal is to significantly reduce heart attack deaths, which are the leading cause of mortality in the United States,” he said. “We have an educational mission in addition to providing medical care. Studies prove that by teaching the public to recognize and react to the early symptoms of a possible heart attack we can improve outcomes dramatically. Community outreach to educate and encourage the public to recognize when to call 911 quickly to seek care is an important part of our mission.”
“Studies have shown that prompt diagnosis and treatment is critical to improved outcomes,” said Lee Domanico, Marin General Hospital CEO. “Whether it is the ability to provide rapid diagnosis and treatment to prevent further damage to the heart muscle, or the expertise to monitor patients whose diagnosis is uncertain to make sure they’re neither sent home too soon nor admitted too quickly, the Chest Pain Center accreditation shows that the Marin community can rely on us for the best possible care when experiencing possible heart attack symptoms.”
About The Haynes Cardiovascular Institute
Haynes Cardiovascular Institute links Marin's physicians, Marin General Hospital and community resources in the delivery of coordinated, high-quality cardiac care, offering a full range of sophisticated cardiac services that stress education and disease prevention, state-of-the-art diagnostic services, and excellence in the treatment of heart disease.
About the Society of Chest Pain Centers (SCPC)
Established in 1998, SCPC is a patient-centric nonprofit international organization focused on improving care for patients with heart disease. Central to SCPC’s mission is the question, “What is right for the patient?” In response, SCPC promotes protocol-based medicine, often delivered through a chest pain center model, to address the diagnosis and treatment of acute coronary syndrome and heart failure and to promote the adoption of process improvement science by healthcare providers. To best fulfill this mission, SCPC provides accreditation and education to facilities striving for optimum cardiac care. SCPC is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. For more information on SCPC and accreditation opportunities, visit www.scpcp.org, or call toll free 1-877-271-4176.
