Neurology & Neurosurgery (see more articles like this)

Florida Hospital’s Brain Attack Center received a high honor from the organization responsible for setting standards in healthcare.  The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) awarded the Brain Attack Center an extension of its designation as a Primary Stroke Center.  Florida Hospital’s Brain Attack Center is the only JCAHO-certified facility in Orange, Osceola, and Seminole Counties.

Florida Hospital’s center uses evidence-based protocols to rapidly assess and treat stroke patients, which can help improve their quality of life and increase their chance of survival after a stroke.

The Brain Attack Center at Florida Hospital received an initial certification in January 2005 and recently completed an intra-cycle review to obtain an extension of that certification.  Certification is based on a program’s compliance with consensus-based national standards, effective use of established clinical practice guidelines, and performance measurement and improvement activities.

“Receiving this extension of our designation as a Primary Stroke Center shows that the Brain Attack Center at Florida Hospital is continuing to provide quality service to our stroke patients,” said Debbie Lombardi, assistant vice president of the Florida Hospital Neuroscience Institute. “We are honored to have the only JCAHO-certified Primary Stroke Center in this area.”

Stroke, or brain attack, is the third leading cause of death and severe long-term disability in the United States.  According to the American Heart Association, someone in America has a stroke every 45 seconds, and every three minutes, someone dies because of a stroke.