Four UPMC in Central Pa. Hospitals Earn Platinum Achievement Award for Heart Attack Treatment

June 20, 2023

HARRISBURG, Pa. – Four UPMC in Central Pa. hospitals have received the American College of Cardiology’s NCDR Chest Pain – MI Registry Platinum Performance Achievement Award for 2023. UPMC Harrisburg, UPMC West Shore, UPMC Hanover and UPMC Memorial are among only 262 hospitals nationwide and the only hospitals in Central Pennsylvania to receive the honor.

The award recognizes UPMC’s commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of care for heart attack patients and signifies that it has reached an aggressive goal of treating these patients to standard levels of care as outlined by the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association clinical guidelines and recommendations.

"At UPMC, providing exceptional care for our patients is our top priority," said Lou Baverso, president of UPMC in Central Pa. “We are honored to receive the American College of Cardiology’s NCDR Chest Pain – MI Registry Platinum Performance Achievement Award again in 2023. This recognition is a testament to the dedication and excellence of our cardiologists, nurses, technicians and the entire heart and vascular team at these hospitals.”

To receive the Chest Pain – MI Registry Platinum Performance Achievement Award, hospitals are required to demonstrate sustained achievement in the Chest Pain – MI Registry for two consecutive years and performed at the highest level for specific performance measures. 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.

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.

The Centers for Disease Control estimates that over 800,000 Americans suffer a heart attack each year. Chronic disease management care, including for heart disease, is a consistent “significant health need” in central Pennsylvania, according to UPMC’s Community Health Needs Assessments.

Pioneers in cardiovascular health since 1956, doctors at the UPMC Heart and Vascular Institute in central Pennsylvania were the first in the region to perform open heart surgery and the first to perform coronary artery balloon angioplasty. Other firsts include the implantation of a drug-eluting coronary stent, percutaneous (minimally invasive) aortic valve procedures (TAVR), and the implantation of FDA-approved percutaneous mitral valve repair device.

For more information on the UPMC Heart and Vascular Institute in Central Pennsylvania, visit UPMC.com/CentralPaHeart.