South Central Reporter

SBL Fayette County Hospital has been awarded the American Heart Association's Get With The Guidelines® - Stroke Rural Recognition Bronze award. This accolade is in recognition of their efforts to enhance stroke care and address disparities in healthcare outcomes for rural communities.

The American Heart Association, a prominent nonprofit organization dedicated to heart and brain health, acknowledges the crucial role rural hospitals play in providing timely, evidence-based care. To honor these contributions, all rural hospitals participating in the Get With The Guidelines - Stroke program are eligible for awards based on early acute stroke performance metrics.

Marci Barth, Chief Nursing Officer at SBL Fayette County Hospital, expressed pride in the hospital's achievements: "We are proud that our team at SBL Fayette County Hospital is recognized for the important work we do every day to improve the lives of people in our community who are affected by strokes, giving them the best possible chance of recovery and survival." She added, "We strive to provide excellent stroke care, and this achievement assures people in our community that we can provide high quality care for them in these critical situations."

The award highlights hospitals' dedication to acute stroke care excellence through compliance with guidelines on intravenous thrombolytic therapy, timely inter-facility transfers, dysphagia screening, documentation of symptom timelines and deficit assessments, communication with emergency medical services, brain imaging procedures, and consultation with stroke experts.