BWFH nationally recognized for its commitment to providing high-quality heart failure care

Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital has received the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines®-Heart Failure Gold Plus with Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll quality achievement award for its commitment to improving outcomes for patients with heart failure, meaning reduced readmissions and more healthy days at home.

About 6.2 million U.S. adults are living with heart failure (HF). Despite the name, HF doesn’t mean that the heart has stopped working—it means the heart is having a hard time pumping blood and oxygen throughout the body. While there’s no cure for HF, patients can live a quality life by working with their health care team to create and stick with a plan that may include medication, symptom monitoring and lifestyle changes.

The Get With The Guidelines - Heart Failure quality achievement award is earned by hospitals that demonstrate a commitment to treating patients according to the most up-to-date guidelines as outlined by the American Heart Association. Get With The Guidelines puts the expertise of the American Heart Association to work for hospitals nationwide, helping ensure patient care is aligned with the latest research- and evidence-based guidelines. The program aims to increasing healthy days at home and reduce hospital readmissions for heart failure patients.

“Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital is committed to improving patient care by adhering to the latest treatment guidelines,” says Chief Medical Officer Scott Schissel, MD, PhD. “Get With The Guidelines makes it easier for our teams to put proven knowledge and guidelines to work on a daily basis, which studies show can help patients recover better. The end goal is to ensure more people in our area can experience longer, healthier lives.”

The hospital has gone so far as to establish a Heart Failure Workgroup. “Collecting data for Get With The Guidelines is what enabled us to establish our Heart Failure Workgroup,” says Senior Quality Analyst Katy O’Loughlin. “The group takes a closer look at the metrics and an even closer look at our performance metrics with an equity lens to ensure we continue to provide care in an equitable fashion,” says Katy O’Loughlin, Senior Quality Analyst.

Each year, program participants qualify for the award recognition by demonstrating how their organization has committed to providing quality care for HF patients. In addition to following treatment guidelines, Get With The Guidelines participants also provide education to patients to help them manage their HF at home.

“We are pleased to recognize the leaders and teams at Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital for a strong commitment to caring for people with heart failure,” says Clyde W. Yancy, MD, MSc, MACC, FAHA, MACP, FHFSA, National Chairperson of the American Heart Association Heart Failure Systems of Care Advisory Group and Chief of the Division of Cardiology at Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine. “Hospitals that participate in Get With The Guidelines quality improvement programs often see better patient outcomes, fewer readmissions and lower mortality rates—a win for healthcare systems, families and communities.”

Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital additionally received the American Heart Association’s Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll™ award. Target: Type 2 Diabetes aims to ensure patients with Type 2 diabetes, who might be at higher risk for complications, receive the most up-to-date, evidence-based care when hospitalized due to heart disease or stroke.

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About Get With The Guidelines

Get With The Guidelines^® is the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s hospital-based quality improvement program that provides hospitals with the latest research-based guidelines. Developed with the goal of saving lives and hastening recovery, Get With The Guidelines has touched the lives of more than 12 million patients since 2001. For more information, visit heart.org.

Published 7/13/22