Cheyenne Regional Medical Center Receives Primary Stroke Center Advanced Certification

March 27, 2019

Cheyenne, WY—Cheyenne Regional Medical Center has recently been designated as a Primary Stroke Center by The Joint Commission and the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association.

By being certified as a Primary Stroke Center, Cheyenne Regional has also earned The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval and the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Heart-Check mark quality designations.

“I am very proud of our team,” said Dr. Tracie Caller, a Cheyenne Regional neurologist and the medical director of Cheyenne Regional’s stroke program. “It took an incredible amount of work to obtain this advanced certification, but we all felt that it was worth the effort. We want our patients to know that the stroke care we provide at Cheyenne Regional Medical Center is top notch.”

Part of the certification process required Cheyenne Regional to undergo a rigorous onsite review by Joint Commission surveyors, who evaluated the hospital’s compliance with stroke-related standards and requirements, including program management, delivery of clinical care and performance improvement. The review took place in January 2019.

“A stroke certification from The Joint Commission is considered the gold standard for stroke care,” said Hope Robinson, Cheyenne Regional’s stroke care program manager. “The certification recognizes hospitals that make exceptional efforts to foster better outcomes for stroke care. This includes having an acute stroke team available 24/7, a neurologist accessible 24/7 via telemedicine or in person, sufficient diagnostic services and the ability to provide IV thrombolytics. The hospital must also track, monitor and report stroke-related performance measures.”

Advanced Certification for Primary Stroke Centers is awarded for a two-year period to Joint Commission-accredited acute-care hospitals. The certification is based on the Brain Attack Coalition’s “Recommendations for the Establishment of Primary Stroke Centers.”

“Cheyenne Regional Medical Center has thoroughly demonstrated the greatest level of commitment to the care of stroke patients through its Advanced Certification for Primary Stroke Centers,” said Patrick Phelan, The Joint Commission’s executive director of Hospital Business Development. “We commend Cheyenne Regional Medical Center for becoming a leader in stroke care.”

Stroke is the number four cause of death and a leading cause of adult disability in the United States, according to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. About 795,000 people suffer a new or recurrent stroke in the United States every year. On average, someone suffers a stroke every 40 seconds, and someone dies of a stroke every four minutes.

“We congratulate Cheyenne Regional Medical Center for achieving Primary Stroke Center designation,” said Nancy Brown, the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s chief executive officer. “By adhering to this very specific set of treatment guidelines, Cheyenne Regional has clearly made it a priority to deliver high quality care to patients affected by stroke.”

An independent, nonprofit organization, The Joint Commission is the nation’s oldest and largest standards-setting and accrediting body in healthcare. The American Heart Association is the nation’s oldest and largest voluntary organization dedicated to fighting heart disease and stroke. The American Stroke Association is a division of the American Heart Association.