In its continuous pursuit of quality cardiac care, Houston Northwest Medical Center was proudly recognized as the first accredited chest pain center in Houston and one of a handful in Texas to be named a Cycle III Chest Pain Center with PCI (percutaneous coronary intervention). Cycle III accreditation is the highest accreditation possible for treatment of chest pain -- by the Society of Chest Pain Centers.
The Society of Chest Pain Centers (SCPC) is a patient centric non-profit international professional organization focused upon improving care for patients with acute coronary syndromes and other related maladies. The Society's accreditation recognizes Chest Pain Centers who have demonstrated its expertise and commitment to quality patient care by meeting or exceeding a wide set of stringent criteria and completing on-site evaluations by a review team from the Society of Chest Pain Centers.
"The high standards set by the society will benefit our patients, who can be certain that our goal with our heart attack patients is to save lives, improve patient outcomes, and provide an overall strategy for cardiac care," says Pam Egan, Director of the Ed Roberson Heart Center at Houston Northwest Medical Center.
To earn Chest Pain Center accreditation, a facility must successfully meet the Society's eight criteria:
- Integrating the emergency department with the local emergency medical system
- Assessing, diagnosing, and treating patients quickly
- Effectively treating patients with low risk for acute coronary syndrome and no assignable cause for their symptoms
- Continually seeking to improve processes and procedures
- Ensuring Chest Pain Center personnel competency and training
- Maintaining organizational structure and commitment
- Having 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
"We collectively looked at the entire continuum of care and involved everyone who would impact how quickly and efficiently the patient could be treated," says Catherine Bissell, RN, Chest Pain Center coordinator. "Everyone is vital to making this program work as a seamless system."