Riverview Health Honored with Mission: Lifeline Quality Achievement Award and Fit-Friendly Worksite Award

Riverview Health has received the Mission: Lifeline® Silver Receiving Quality Achievement Award for implementing specific quality improvement measures outlined by the American Heart Association (AHA) for the treatment of patients who suffer severe heart attacks. In addition, Riverview Health earned the AHA’s Fit-Friendly Worksite Award for promoting a culture of wellness.

Each year in the United States, approximately 250,000 people have a STEMI, or ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction, caused by a complete blockage of blood flow to the heart that requires timely treatment. To prevent death, it’s critical to immediately restore blood flow, either by surgically opening the blocked vessel or by giving clot-busting medication.

The American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline program helps hospitals, emergency medical services and communities improve response times so people who suffer from a STEMI receive prompt, appropriate treatment. The program’s goal is to streamline systems of care to quickly get heart attack patients from the first 9-1-1 call to hospital treatment.

“Riverview Health is dedicated to improving the quality of care for our patients who suffer a heart attack, and the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline program is helping us accomplish that goal through internationally respected clinical guidelines,” said Tammi Nash, clinical operations director at Riverview Health Heart & Vascular. “We are pleased to be recognized for our dedication and achievements in cardiac care, and I am very proud of our team.”

“We commend Riverview Health for this achievement award, which reflects a significant institutional commitment to improve the quality of care for their heart attack patients,” said A. Gray Ellrodt, MD, Chair of the Mission: Lifeline committee and Chief of Medicine at the Berkshire Medical Center in Pittsfield, Mass. “All too many heart attack patients in the United States still fail to receive appropriate treatment for their life-threatening condition within the recommended timeframes. We must all continue this important work to streamline and coordinate regional systems of care to save lives and prevent complications.”

Riverview Health earned the award by meeting specific criteria and standards of performance for the quick and appropriate treatment of STEMI patients to open the blocked artery. Before patients are discharged, they are started on aggressive risk reduction therapies such as cholesterol-lowering drugs, aspirin, ACE inhibitors and beta-blockers, and they receive smoking cessation counseling if needed. Eligible hospitals must adhere to these measures at a set level for a designated period to receive the awards.

The Fit-Friendly Worksite award recognizes employers who go above and beyond when it comes to their employees’ health. This includes offering employees physical activity support, increasing healthy eating options at work and promoting a wellness culture.

“As we continue to improve the health and well-being of our patients, we make an effort to prioritize our employees’ health as well,” said Mindi Matthews, director of Health and Wellness at Riverview Health. “Some of the programs we’ve implemented to create a wellness culture include our annual Waist Reduction program, annual health screenings and risk assessments, a team-based activity program called Step it Up! and a weight-loss program called Minimize Your BMI.”