Baptist North Mississippi and Baptist DeSoto recently received full chest pain accreditation from the Society of Cardiovascular Patient Care, an international not-for-profit organization that focuses on transforming cardiovascular care.
To become an accredited chest pain center, both hospitals completed SCPC’s rigorous evaluations on their ability to assess, diagnose and treat patients who may be experiencing a heart attack. Both hospitals met strict criteria aimed at:
- Reducing the time from onset of symptoms to diagnosis and treatment
- Treating patients more quickly during the critical window of time when the integrity of the heart muscle can be preserved
- Monitoring patients when it is not certain that they are having a heart attack to ensure that they are not sent home too quickly or needlessly admitted to the hospital
According to SCPC, hospitals that have received the accreditation have achieved a higher level of expertise in dealing with patients who present with symptoms of a heart attack. Accredited hospitals also emphasize the importance of standardized diagnostic and treatment programs that provide more efficient and effective evaluation as well as more appropriate and rapid treatment of patients with chest pain and other heart attack symptoms. SCPC-accredited hospitals also promote a healthier lifestyle to reduce the risk factors for heart attacks.