Joliet hospital received stroke center certification

AMITA Health Saint Joseph Medical Center Joliet has received certification as a comprehensive stroke center from DNV GL Healthcare, an international accrediting body for health care facilities.

AMITA Health Saint Joseph is one of only five hospitals in Illinois to have received this level of advanced certification for the care of stroke from DNV GL Healthcare.

According to DNV GL, comprehensive stroke centers represent the most advanced stroke treatment available in a given geographic area.

This designation means the clinicians at AMITA Health Saint Joseph have proven their efforts in caring for stroke patients and exceed the patient safety standards, best practice policies and procedures and meet target volumes set forth by DNV GL, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and the American Stroke Association.

The emphasis placed on deploying a disciplined management system and relevant clinical best practices sets DNV GL certified comprehensive stroke centers apart from other programs.

Patients suspected of experiencing a stroke are immediately evaluated and treated by the AMITA Health Saint Joseph stroke team, which includes emergency department physicians and clinicians, neurosurgeons and endovascular physicians available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to provide the best, most efficient care for the best results.

Certification by DNV GL Healthcare as a comprehensive stroke center is based on standards set forth by the Brain Attack Coalition and the American Stroke Association, affirming the certified organizations address the full spectrum of stroke care—diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation and patient education—and establishes clear metrics to evaluate outcomes.

When it comes to stroke, patients need quality clinicians, resources and extreme efficiency, due to the time-critical nature of the condition, said Robert Erickson, president and CEO of the medical center.

Stroke is the number five cause of death and a leading cause of adult disability in the United States, according to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association.

On average, someone suffers a stroke every 40 seconds; someone dies of a stroke every four minutes; and 795,000 people suffer a new or recurrent stroke each year.

“Having a comprehensive stroke center in our community ensures residents can receive the fastest, most appropriate care close to home,” Erickson said said in a news release.

“This certification from DNV GL validates the effort we’ve put into our program to ensure the health and safety of our community. We continue to build our expertise and resources as our region’s hub for tertiary care.”

AMITA Health Resurrection Medical Center Chicago was also certified as a comprehensive stroke center by DNV GL Healthcare last January.

About AMITA Health

AMITA Health is a joint operating company formed by Advent Health in Altamonte Springs, Fla., and St. Louis-based Ascension. AMITA Health is the largest health system in Illinois, comprising 19 hospitals and more than 230 sites of care.

The health system has 900 providers in its medical groups, more than 26,000 associates and 7,000 physician partners and serves over 4.3 million residents in the greater Chicagoland area.

About DNV GL Healthcare

DNV GL is a world-leading certification body that helps businesses assure the performance of their organizations, products, people, facilities and supply chains through certification, verification, assessment, and training services.

Within health care, DNV GL helps its customers achieve excellence by improving quality and patient safety through hospital accreditation, disease-specific certifications and quality management training.

For more information, visit dnvglhealthcare.com.

About AMITA Health Saint Joseph Medical Center Joliet

Visit presencehealth.org/presence-saint-joseph-medical-center-joliet.