Adventist Health Sonora awarded Acute Stroke Ready Hospital Certification from The Joint Commission

Adventist Health Sonora has earned The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval^® and the American Stroke Association’s Heart-Check mark for Acute Stroke Ready Hospital Certification.

“We take our responsibility to provide excellent care for our community very seriously,” says Michelle Fuentes, Adventist Health Sonora president. “I am proud of the work our team has done to achieve this advanced certification and ensure we meet high standards in providing stroke care.”

To achieve certification, Adventist Health Sonora was required to demonstrate several advancements related to the care of stroke patients. These included:

• 24/7 neurology consults: implemented telehealth neurology service, which allows neurologists to perform real-time patient assessments and make care recommendations, anytime
• Staff education and certification: increased the number of nursing staff with the education and certification to perform the National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS)
• Accelerated imaging services: shaved time off of “door to CT,” the time it takes from the moment a patient presents with stroke symptoms to perform a CT
• Air ambulance collaboration: developed agreement with PHI Air Medical to facilitate rapid air ambulance transfer of stroke patients to a higher level of care, when necessary

“Acute Stroke Ready Hospital Certification recognizes healthcare organizations committed to striving for excellence and fostering continuous improvement in patient safety and quality of care,” says Ken Grubbs, DNP, MBA, RN, executive vice president of Accreditation and Certification Operations and chief nursing officer, The Joint Commission. “We commend Adventist Health Sonora for using The Joint Commission certification process to reduce variation in clinical processes and to strengthen its clinical program to drive safer, higher quality and more compassionate care for individuals served.”

Late last year, Adventist Health Sonora underwent a rigorous, unannounced onsite review by Joint Commission reviewers, who evaluated compliance with Acute Stroke Ready Certification Standards. The reviewers also conducted onsite observations and interviews.

For more information about Acute Stroke Ready Hospital Certification, please visit The Joint Commission website.