For Immediate Release: September 21, 2009

Contact: Brian Reardon (217) 544-6464, ext. 44306 brian.reardon@st-johns.org

St. John’s Hospital receives American College of Cardiology Foundation’s NCDR® ACTION Registry®–GWTGTM Gold Performance Achievement Award

SPRINGFIELD – Prairie Heart Institute at St. John’s Hospital has received the American College of Cardiology Foundation’s NCDR ACTION Registry–GWTG (Get With the Guidelines) Gold Performance Achievement Award for 2009 – one of only 121 hospitals nationwide to do so. The award recognizes Prairie Heart’s commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of care for heart attack patients, and signifies that Prairie Heart has reached an aggressive goal of treating coronary artery disease patients with 85 percent compliance to core standard levels of care outlined by the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association clinical guidelines and recommendations.

To receive the ACTION Registry–GWTG Gold Performance Achievement Award, Prairie Heart Institute at St. John’s Hospital consistently followed the treatment guidelines in ACTION Registry–GWTG for 24 consecutive months. These include aggressive use of medications like cholesterol-lowering drugs, beta-blockers, ACE inhibitors, aspirin, and anticoagulants in the hospital.

“The American College of Cardiology Foundation and the American Heart Association commend Prairie Heart Institute at St. John’s Hospital for its success in implementing standards of care and protocols,” said Christopher Cannon, MD, ACTION Registry–GWTG Steering Committee Chairperson from Harvard Medical School. “The full implementation of acute and secondary prevention guideline-recommended therapy is a critical step in saving the lives and improving outcomes of heart attack patients,” added Gregg C. Fonarow, MD, Steering Committee Vice- Chairperson and Director of Ahmanson-UCLA Cardiomyopathy Center.

 “Prairie Heart Institute at St. John’s Hospital’s participation in the ACTION Registry-GWTG stresses our commitment to the practice of evidence-based medicine and adherence to national guidelines. It is clear from the superior clinical results we’ve achieved treating patients suffering from heart attacks that our ongoing commitment to the adoption and implementation of these national treatment guidelines improves outcomes and saves lives,” said Dr. Charles Lucore, Executive Director, Prairie Heart Institute at St. John’s Hospital.  “This Gold Performance Achievement Award is another example of the national recognition given to Prairie Heart at St. John’s over the years for the exceptional cardiovascular care we provide to our patients.”

The following graph compares Prairie Heart Institute at St. John’s Hospital’s performance on key heart attack quality indicators with the national average for hospitals and those hospitals performing in the top 10 percent.