CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi-Shoreline has earned a Chest Pain Center with Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI) Accreditation from the Society of Chest Pain Centers (SCPC). The PCI designation is specific to facilities with cardiac catheterization labs providing full-service access 24/7.
This is the second successful accreditation CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital-Shoreline has earned from SCPC.
"Earning this accreditation took a tremendous amount of work for all involved," said Paul Gaden, CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi-Shoreline's chief operating officer. "We put the steps in place to assure that anyone entering the CHRISTUS Spohn health system at any of our facilities will receive rapid access and the highest level of care possible for acute coronary syndrome (ACS). This accreditation validates the level of care we state that we provide."
ACS is the disease that includes heart attack, chest pain and angina. Heart attacks are the leading cause of death in the United States, with 600,000 people dying of heart disease annually. More than five million Americans visit hospitals each year with chest pain.
"People tend to wait when they think they might be having a heart attack, and that's a mistake," said Dr. Dave Blanchard, CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital-Shoreline Emergency Department medical director. "Prior to our first accreditation in 2008, 50 percent of our ACS patients arrived in the emergency department more than two hours after the onset of symptoms. Only one third of them came by ambulance, not realizing the sooner a heart attack is treated, the less damage to the heart and better the outcome.
"In the last three years, we have seen improvement. Now 75 percent of our ACS patients arrive within two hours of symptom onset, and almost half of them come by ambulance. The word is getting out that 'time is muscle.'"
To become an Accredited Chest Pain Center, CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital-Shoreline engaged in a rigorous reevaluation and refinement of its cardiac care process. The accreditation means CHRISTUS Spohn demonstrated expertise in the following areas:
- Integrating the emergency department with the local
emergency medical system - Assessing, diagnosing and treating patients quickly
- Effectively treating patients with low risk for ACS and
no assignable cause for their symptoms - Continually seeking to improve the cardiac process
and procedures - Ensuring the competence and training of Accredited
Chest Pain Center personnel - 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
CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital-Shoreline's state-of-the-art heart care encompasses the entire continuum of care for the ACS patient and includes focal points such as dispatch, emergency medical system, emergency department, cath lab, CHRISTUS Spohn's quality assurance plan and CHRISTUS Spohn's community outreach program.
As an Accredited Chest Pain Center, CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital-Shoreline ensures that patients who arrive at the hospital complaining of chest pain or other symptoms involving a heart attack receive the treatment necessary during the critical window of time where the integrity of the heart muscle can be preserved.
By becoming an Accredited Chest Pain Center, CHRISTUS Spohn has enhanced the quality of care for the ACS patient, and has demonstrated its commitment to higher standards.
The Society of Chest Pain Centers (SCPC) is an international nonprofit organization that focuses on transforming cardiovascular care by assisting facilities in their effort to create quality, cost and patient satisfaction. SCPC provides the support needed for a hospital to effectively bridge existing gaps in treatment by providing the tools, education and support necessary to successfully navigate the changing face of health care.
