For Immediate Release: January 16, 2008

Contact: Brian Reardon (217) 544-6464, ext. 44306

St. John’s Hospital Stroke Treatment Program receives Gold Seal of Approval™

SPRINGFIELD -- St. John’s Hospital has earned the Gold Seal of Approval™ from The Joint Commission for Primary Stroke Centers. The certification recognizes hospitals that make exceptional efforts to foster better outcomes for stroke care. Certified Primary Stroke Programs adhere to national stroke guidelines, continually assess and improve how care is delivered, and tailor their stroke treatment to individual needs.

To earn this distinction, a hospital’s stroke program undergoes an extensive, on-site evaluation by The Joint Commission every two years. The program is evaluated against Joint Commission standards through an assessment of a program's processes, the program's ability to evaluate and improve care within its own organization, and interviews with patients and staff.

"This certification means St. John’s Hospital does the right things and does them well for stroke patients," said Jean E. Range, MS, RN, CPHQ, executive director, Disease-Specific Care Certification, Joint Commission. An independent, not-for-profit organization, The Joint Commission is the nation's oldest and largest standards-setting and accrediting body in health care.

"St. John’s Hospital pursued this certification as part of our ongoing efforts to continually provide better care for stroke patients. The certification demonstrates our commitment to implementing best practices and recognizes the great work of our stroke team members who work tirelessly to provide the very best care for stroke patients,” said Rodger Elble, MD, PhD, Medical Director of the St. John’s Hospital Stroke Center, professor and chair of neurology at SIU School of Medicine.

St. John's Hospital Stroke Treatment program offers:

• Expert Emergency Department staff trained in managing and treating stroke. If stroke is confirmed, the patient is evaluated to see if he or she is a candidate for the only FDA-approved drug t-PA for acute stroke. t-PA (tissue plasminogen activator) is a clot-busting drug that can significantly reduce long-term disability if given within the first three hours after ischemic stroke occurs. Stroke patients that have met the criteria to receive t-PA are given it 100 percent of the time at St. John's Hospital.
• A 64-slice CT scanner located within the Emergency Department that allows for rapid detection of stroke. 
• A dedicated Radiology Department that offers expert interpretation of magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography angiography (CTA), and CT scans; as well as an integrated, high-speed, on-line radiology service that features a voice recognition dictation system.
• Multidisciplinary team of physicians consisting of neurologists, neurosurgeons, vascular surgeons, and cardiologists.
• Inpatient care that provides a healing environment that recognizes the important role family members play in a patient’s recovery.
• Rehabilitation therapists-occupational, speech and physical therapists- that are dedicated to getting patients functioning to their fullest potential.
• Physicians, nursing staff and other dedicated and valuable staff members provide a wide variety of services and expertise to help our patients recover to their fullest potential as quickly as possible.
• The Joint Commission launched its Disease-Specific Care Certification program in 2002. It is the first program of its kind in the country to certify disease management programs. A list of programs certified by The Joint Commission is available at http://www.jointcommission.org.

Founded in 1951, The Joint Commission seeks to continuously improve the safety and quality of care provided to the public through the provision of health care accreditation and related services that support performance improvement in health care organizations.