Houston Methodist Willowbrook Hospital has received the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award. The award recognizes the hospital’s commitment to ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized guidelines based on the latest scientific evidence.

 

Additionally, Houston Methodist Willowbrook received the association’s Target: StrokeSM Honor Roll Elite award for meeting quality measures to reduce the time between the patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment with the clot-buster tissue plasminogen activator, or tPA, the only drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat ischemic stroke. Houston Methodist Willowbrook was found to maintain a 60-minute or less door-to-tPA time in more than 75 percent of acute ischemic stroke cases.

 

“These awards reinforce our hospital’s commitment to providing quality, advanced stroke treatments to patients quickly and safely,” said Keith Barber, chief executive officer, Houston Methodist Willowbrook Hospital and senior vice president, Houston Methodist.

 

According to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, stroke is the No. 5 cause of death and a leading cause of adult disability in the United States. On average, someone in the U.S. suffers a stroke every 40 seconds, and nearly 795,000 people suffer a new or recurrent stroke each year. As a certified Primary Stroke Center by the Joint Commission, the specialists at Houston Methodist Willowbrook provide coordinated, interdisciplinary, rapid-response care to ensure the best possible recovery for each stroke patient. 

 

“At Houston Methodist Willowbrook Primary Stroke Center, we pride ourselves on providing our patients with treatments and interventions that are supported by evidence and recommended by health care organizations such as the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association,” said Kasey Gildersleeve, M.D., medical director of the Houston Methodist Willowbrook Primary Stroke Center. “There has been much progress in the management of stroke patients over the past few years, and we are continually evolving our stroke program to continue to offer exceptional, unparalleled care.”

 

Since December of last year, Houston Methodist Willowbrook uses telemedicine as part of stroke care. With telemedicine, a vascular neurologist can assess a patient showing signs of stroke through videoconferencing, allowing for even faster diagnosis and treatment when counts. Gildersleeve is one of the telemedicine stroke care neurologists on call.

 

Houston Methodist Willowbrook Hospital is also actively involved in stroke education and prevention outreach. Medical staff and specialists participate in community health events throughout the year to educate the community about recognizing the signs and symptoms of stroke, and ways to prevent stroke. Many of these partnerships and programs are funded by the Swadesh Khurana Endowment, which supports stroke awareness and education, and the advancement of stroke care in Northwest Houston. 

 

“Our goal is to minimize the devastating effects of stroke as much as possible, while also providing patients and their families the education and tools they need to begin the road to recovery and to prevent future strokes,” said Gildersleeve.

 

Get With The Guidelines is the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s hospital-based quality improvement program that provides hospitals with tools and resources to increase adherence to the latest research-based guidelines. This is the second year that Houston Methodist Willowbrook has been awarded the Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Gold Plus award.

 

For more information about Get With The Guidelines, visit heart.org.

 

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About Houston Methodist Willowbrook Hospital 

 

Houston Methodist Willowbrook Hospital is a 312 bed, not-for-profit, faith-based hospital, which is part of Houston Methodist. The hospital has expanded in Northwest Houston to serve the comprehensive health care needs of the growing community. 

 

Houston Methodist Willowbrook Hospital has been named a Magnet recognized health care facility by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s (ANCC) Magnet Recognition Program®. 

 

Houston Methodist Willowbrook is ranked No. 7 in the Houston metro area and No. 11 in Texas by U.S. News & World Report as a “Best Hospital” in 2018.  

 

Houston Methodist Willowbrook Hospital specializes in cardiology and cardiovascular services, neurology, neurosurgery, orthopedics and sports medicine, and comprehensive cancer services. Houston Methodist Willowbrook Hospital has a Breast Care Center, Cancer Center, Imaging Center, Infusion Center, Sleep Center, and Surgical Weight Loss Center and operates a Childbirth Center with a Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

 

For more information about the comprehensive services available on the Houston Methodist Willowbrook campus and to learn about upcoming events, please visit houstonmethodist.org/willowbrook. To find a physician, call 281.737.2500.