SJH&MC receives Chest Pain Center accreditation

The Society of Chest Pain Centers has recognized SJH&MC efforts to evaluate and examine its clinical process for patients arriving to the hospital with chest pain, accrediting it as a Chest Pain Center with PCI (percutaneous coronary intervention).

“An honor like this is truly a partnership,” said Tom Lalonde, M.D., chief of Cardiovascular Diseases at SJH&MC. “From the EMS partners to the Emergency Center and through to the Cardiac Cath labs and Operating Rooms, we all must be working together with the same diligence and clinical excellence to ensure patients get the appropriate treatment as quickly as possible.”

The Chest Pain Center accreditation affirms that SJH&MC meets all scientific protocols and recommendations put forth by the Society to begin treatment sooner, and increase the accuracy and effectiveness of treatment. At SJH&MC, more than 250 patients per month are expeditiously evaluated for chest pain of possible cardiac origin in the hospital’s Clinical Decision Unit.

Key areas of the accreditation process included examination of:

• Integrating the Emergency Center with the local emergency medical system
• Assessing, diagnosing, and treating patients quickly
• Effectively treating patients with low and intermediate 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