WMHS Heart Institute Receives National Recognition

Photo: Receiving the award from Premier are (left to right) Jamie Karstetter, Nurse Manager, Cardiovascular Unit; Karen Stair, Director of Cardiovascular Services; Pam Kline, Nurse Manager, Perioperative Services; Mark Nelson, M.D., cardiac surgeon; Frank Pommett, Senior Vice President, WMHS; Gerald Goldstein, M.D., anesthesiologist; Pat Farner, Director, Perioperative Services; and Barry Ronan, President/CEO.

The Heart Institute at the Western Maryland Health System was one of six recipients of a prestigious Premier Award for Quality in the area of coronary artery bypass graft (CABG). This nationally-recognized award is presented annually by Premier, an alliance of hospitals and health systems, and honors clinical excellence in both quality of care and operational efficiency.

"This is quite an honor," explained Barry P. Ronan, President and CEO at WMHS. "Out of nearly 400 eligible hospitals nationwide, we were selected as an industry leader in the area of coronary artery bypass grafts. Only three winners were picked in the non-teaching hospital category. This award is a testament to the quality provided by our cardiac surgeons, anesthesiologists, and all members of the surgical and cardiovascular unit teams, as well as those who provide support to them."

Given in five clinical areas, the Premier Award for Quality is based on quality and cost data regularly submitted to Premier for reporting and benchmarking purposes. Receiving this award differentiates its winners as industry leaders that deliver outstanding patient care while reducing the cost of healthcare through the efficient use of resources.

In addition to coronary artery bypass grafts, the other clinical areas considered for the 2005 Premier Award for Quality are total joint replacement of the hip and/or knee, heart failure, community acquired pneumonia and acute myocardial infarction. Only three winners were picked in each category for each hospital type from an eligible pool of nearly 400 Premier hospitals.

Other winners for CABG in the teaching and non-teaching hospitals categories were Sinai Hospital in Baltimore; Millard Fillmore Gate Circle in Buffalo, New York; Rochester (NY) General Hospital, Terrbonne General Hospital in Hauma, Louisiana; and Jefferson Regional Medical Center in Pittsburgh.

National winners in all clinical areas were announced at the Premier Annual Breakthroughs Conference and Exhibition in Las Vegas in May. A team from the WMHS Heart Institute, including cardiac surgeon Mark Nelson, M.D., accepted the award on behalf of their co-workers. The award itself was delivered June 13 to the local health system and will be displayed in the main lobby on the Sacred Heart Campus.

Premier also has a nationwide advertising campaign featuring the list of winners in all five clinical categories. The local health system has been listed as the best of the best in ads in the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and many healthcare trade journals.

Photo below : Members of the WMHS Heart Institute Team