Six Hackensack Meridian Hospitals Among Nation’s Top Performing for Treatment of Heart Attack Patients

American College of Cardiology NCDR Chest Pain ̶ MI Registry Platinum Performance Achievement Award recognizes sustained, high level performance in quality of care

Five Hackensack Meridian medical centers received the American College of Cardiology’s (ACC) NCDR Chest Pain ̶ MI Registry Platinum Performance Achievement Award and another received the Silver Performance Achievement Award for 2023. The award recognizes the medical centers’ commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of care for heart attack patients and signifies they have reached an aggressive goal of treating these patients to standard levels of care as outlined by the ACC/American Heart Association clinical guidelines and recommendations.

Platinum Performance Achievement Award recipients include the following.

• Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune, NJ
• JFK University Medical Center in Edison, NJ
• Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank, NJ
• Ocean University Medical Center in Brick, NJ
• Bayshore Medical Center in Holmdel, NJ
• Southern Ocean Medical Center in Manahawkin, NJ, received the Silver Performance Achievement Award.

To receive the Platinum Performance Achievement Award, the Hackensack Meridian medical centers demonstrated sustained achievement in the Chest Pain ̶ MI Registry for two consecutive years (2021 & 2022), and performed at the highest level for specific performance measures. Only 262 hospitals nationwide received this honor. In receiving the Silver Performance Achievement Award, Southern Ocean Medical Center demonstrated sustained achievement in the Registry for four consecutive quarters during 2022 and performed with distinction in specific performance measures. Southern Ocean joins just 82 hospitals across the country in receiving this honor.

“It is an honor to award these Hackensack Meridian medical centers for their valuable national leadership and dedication to meeting comprehensive performance measures in patient care,” said Michael C. Kontos, M.D., FACC, chair of the NCDR Chest Pain – MI Registry Steering Subcommittee, and cardiologist at Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center. “The receipt of this award indicates that they remain committed to providing top quality, guideline-driven care for heart attack patients. Their success ensures patients are receiving the highest quality cardiovascular care.”

A heart attack occurs when a blood clot in a coronary artery partially or completely blocks blood flow to the heart muscle. Treatment guidelines include administering aspirin upon arrival and discharge, timely restoration of blood flow to the blocked artery, smoking cessation counseling and cardiac rehabilitation, among others.

“Heart disease is the leading cause of death of men and women in the U.S., and in New Jersey, with more than 1 in 3 adults in our state having some form of cardiovascular disease that may lead to heart attack,” said Elizabeth A. Maiorana, MBA, MSN, R.N., CCCC, vice president, Cardiovascular Care Transformation Services, Hackensack Meridian Health. “As New Jersey’s largest health care network, we remain committed to providing the best cardiovascular care at all our locations. These awards reflect our commitment to saving the lives of individuals who suffer a heart attack in the communities we serve.”

Chest Pain ̶ MI Registry empowers health care provider teams to consistently treat heart attack patients according to the most current, science-based guidelines and establishes a national standard for understanding and improving the quality, safety and outcomes of care provided for patients with coronary artery disease, specifically high-risk heart attack patients. Full participation in the registry engages hospitals in a robust quality improvement process using data to drive improvements in adherence to guideline recommendations and overall quality of care provided to heart attack patients.

For information about Hackensack Meridian’s heart failure services, visit www.hackensackmeridianhealth.org/en/services/heart-care/heart-failure. For a free physician referral, call 844-HMH-WELL.

About the American College of Cardiology
The American College of Cardiology envisions a world where innovation and knowledge optimize cardiovascular care and outcomes. As the professional home for the entire cardiovascular care team, the mission of the College and its 54,000 members is to transform cardiovascular care and to improve heart health. The ACC bestows credentials upon cardiovascular professionals who meet stringent qualifications and leads in the formation of health policy, standards and guidelines. The College also provides professional medical education, disseminates cardiovascular research through its world-renowned JACC Journals, operates national registries to measure and improve care, and offers cardiovascular accreditation to hospitals and institutions. For more, visit www.acc.org.