“Saint Francis Hospital-Bartlett is dedicated to providing comprehensive healthcare to our community,” said Jeremy Clark, Saint Francis Hospital-Bartlett chief executive officer. “In addition to adding new beds, our facility expansion in 2012 allowed us to provide additional services. The accreditation of our chest pain center marks a significant step forward in the enhancement of our cardiovascular service line and shows our commitment to providing patients with quality cardiac care close to home.”

As an accredited chest pain center, Saint Francis Hospital-Bartlett’s protocol driven and systematic approach to patient management allows physicians to reduce time to treatment during the critical early stages of a heart attack. It also allows them to better monitor patients when it is not clear if they are having a coronary event. This observation helps ensure that patients are neither sent home too early nor needlessly admitted to the hospital.

Saint Francis Hospital-Bartlett’s accredited chest pain center meets or exceeds the stringent criteria and onsite review by SPCP’s accreditation review specialists. Expertise was demonstrated in several areas including:

• Integrating the emergency room with the local emergency medical system.
• Assessing, diagnosing and treating patients quickly.
• Seeking to continually improve processes and procedures.
• Ensuring the competence and training of accredited chest pain center staff.
• Maintaining organizational structure and commitment.
• Having a functional design that promotes optimal patient care.
• Supporting community outreach programs that educate the public to promptly seek medical care if they display symptoms of a heart attack.

Heart attacks are the leading cause of death in the United States, with 600,000 people dying annually of heart disease. More than five million Americans visit hospitals each year with chest pain.