Jacksonville, Fla. – The Comprehensive Stroke Program at The Neuroscience Institute at Shands Jacksonville has received the Gold Seal of Approval for stroke care from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. Shands Jacksonville earned the Primary Stroke Center Certification after JCAHO conducted a recent on-site review.
“This prestigious award affirms Shands Jacksonville’s commitment to providing premier care for our patients,” says Jim Burkhart, president and administrator at Shands Jacksonville. “The TraumaOne Stroke Alert Team, coupled with medical advances like clot-dissolving drugs, gives patients hope of surviving a stroke and returning to a normal life.”
Each year about 700,000 people experience a new or recurrent stroke, which is the nation’s third leading cause of death. On average, someone suffers a stroke every 45 seconds and someone dies of a stroke every 3.1 minutes. Stroke is a leading cause of serious, long-term disability in the United States, with about 4.7 million stroke survivors alive today.
“JCAHO certification recognizes Shands Jacksonville’s stroke program for providing high quality care on a consistent basis,” says Scott Silliman, M.D., a University of Florida associate professor of neurology and medical director of Shands Jacksonville’s Comprehensive Stroke Program. “Shands Jacksonville takes a team approach to stroke care. Our motivation centers around the mission of our program to provide aggressive medical treatment, increase public knowledge and develop better treatments for stroke.”
The Joint Commission’s Primary Stroke Center Certification is based on the recommendations for primary stroke centers published by the Brain Attack Coalition and the American Stroke Association’s statements/guidelines for stroke care. JCAHO launched the program – the nation’s first – in 2003. A list of Joint Commission-certified programs is available at www.jcaho.org.