LifePoint Hospitals partners with SCPC to achieve Chest Pain Center Accreditation

LifePoint Hospitals®, a leading company focused on providing quality healthcare services close to home, and the Society of Cardiovascular Patient Care (SCPC) have partnered to support LifePoint facilities in attaining Chest Pain Center Accreditation. The effort, which SCPC reports is its first system-wide collaboration of such size, demonstrates LifePoint's commitment to excellence in quality, patient safety and overall patient care.

"LifePoint is committed to providing high quality patient care in the communities we serve and to continually improving quality, safety and patient satisfaction," says David Dill, president and chief operating officer for LifePoint. "Emergency care is a focus at LifePoint. The emergency room often is a patient's first impression of the hospital. System-wide, we focus on providing the best possible patient experience and improving quality by reducing variation, promoting consistency and adopting best practices to enhance our emergency services. Chest Pain Center Accreditation aligns well with our efforts, and we are proud of our 23 hospitals that recently earned this designation."

LifePoint's goal is to achieve Chest Pain Center Accreditation at every LifePoint hospital in the coming years. The first group of hospitals to earn accreditation includes:

• Bourbon Community Hospital in Paris, Ky.
• Clinch Valley Medical Center in Richlands, Va.
• Fauquier Health in Warrenton, Va.
• Georgetown Community Hospital in Ky.
• Havasu Regional Medical Center in Lake Havasu City, Ariz.
• Lake Cumberland Regional Medical Center in Somerset, Ky.
• Logan Memorial Hospital in Russellville, Ky
• Logan Regional Medical Center in Logan, W.Va.
• Maria Parham Medical Center in Henderson, N.C.
• Meadowview Regional Medical Center in Maysville, Ky.
• Memorial Hospital of Martinsville and Henry County in Va.
• Minden Medical Center in La.
• Palestine Regional Medical Center in Texas
• Raleigh General Hospital in Beckley, W. Va.
• Riverview Regional Medical Center in Carthage, Tenn.
• Rockdale Medical Center in Conyers, Ga.
• Southern Tennessee Regional Health System – Lawrenceburg, Tenn.
• Spring View Hospital in Lebanon, Ky.
• Starr Regional Medical Center – Athens, Tenn.
• Sumner Regional Medical Center in Gallatin, Tenn.
• Teche Regional Medical Center in Morgan City, La.
• Valley View Medical Center in Ft. Mohave, Ariz.
• Wythe County Community Hospital in Wytheville, Va.

"LifePoint is the largest national health system to partner with SCPC to lead a group of 23 hospitals from across the nation to achieve Chest Pain Center Accreditation," says Wil Mick, SCPC chief executive officer. "We appreciate the company's commitment and its executive leadership in their promotion of quality cardiac care. This organization is a leader in system management due to their progressive mindset which guides, empowers and supports their people at the local hospital level to be successful. LifePoint has made a profound difference in the lives of those living in the communities they serve."

Chest Pain Center Accreditation is a process that helps hospitals define their strengths and identify areas for improvement to enhance the care of heart attack patients who present in the emergency department (ED) with acute coronary signs and symptoms. The accreditation process is designed to support hospitals' evaluation, diagnostic and treatment processes for heart patients. All aspects of the care experience are addressed from the onset of symptoms to coordination with community responders, emergency medical services, the ED experience, surgical intervention (if necessary), cardiac rehab and discharge.

The collaboration between SCPC and LifePoint served to structure each hospital's alignment with pertinent acute coronary syndrome (ACS) guidelines giving practical solutions where needed. LifePoint and SCPC partnered in an accelerated format for process change with detailed data support and quarterly facility progress reports. The process supported the Early Heart Attack Care (EHAC) educational model for all LifePoint hospital employees at these facilities and their surrounding communities.

Hospitals that earn Chest Pain Center Accreditation must achieve Society-determined competency for 279 required standards as a testament to their performance and also demonstrate a minimum six-month improvement trend within four defined cardiac treatment processes and/or procedures. Each facility commits to ongoing process improvement and regular external review of cardiac process metrics in addition to their own internal quality assurance efforts for the duration of the three-year accreditation timeframe.

Primary benefits of Chest Pain Center Accreditation are operational efficiencies in the care of chest pain patients, improved coordination with local EMS systems, increased community awareness and better integration of patient care teams, all of which lead to better coordination of care for heart patients.