HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital in Oconto Falls nationally recognized for its commitment to quality care for heart attacks

Facade of St. Clare Memorial Hospital

The American Heart Association presents the Mission: Lifeline STEMI Referring Center Silver Plus award for implementation of quality care for heart attack patients

Oconto Falls, Wis. – HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital in Oconto Falls has received the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline® STEMI Referring Center Silver Plus recognition for its commitment to ensuring science-based treatment for all people experiencing a specific type of heart attack known as an ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), known to be more severe and dangerous than other types of heart attacks.

Each year, about 285,000 people in the U.S. experience this type of heart attack,caused by a complete blockage in a coronary artery. Nearly 40% of people who go to the emergency room with acute coronary syndrome are diagnosed with a STEMI. Like all heart attacks, this requires timely treatment to restore blood flow as quickly as possible.

Mission: Lifeline is a national, community-based initiative improving systems of care for patients with STEMI, non-ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI), stroke and out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. The program focuses on streamlining processes to speed the delivery of proper treatment for time sensitive, neuro-cardiovascular disease states.

Recognition as a Mission: Lifeline Referring Center is designed to showcase hospitals of every size on the front lines of care that do not have 24/7 cardiac catheterization lab availability but work in collaboration with emergency medical services to ensure patients receive guideline-directed STEMI and NSTEMI care.

“Care coordination is particularly important when someone experiences a STEMI heart attack, and American Heart Association guidelines call for specific science-based treatment,” said James G. Jollis, M.D., volunteer for the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines® – Coronary Artery Disease Systems of Care Advisory Work Group and cardiologist with The Christ Hospital Physicians – Heart & Vascular in Cincinnati. “Hospitals/Organizations like HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital are recognized for consistently supporting patients to ensure the best opportunity for recovery.”

The Mission: Lifeline Referring Center award is earned by hospitals that demonstrate a commitment to getting patients the most up-to-date research-based care for STEMI as outlined by the American Heart Association.

“HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital is dedicated to improving the quality of heart care, and the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline program helps us achieve that goal,” said Chris Brabant, President and CEO of HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital. “The Mission: Lifeline program puts proven knowledge and guidelines to work on a daily basis so patients have the best possible chance of survival.”

###

About HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital
HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital serves Oconto Falls and the surrounding communities as a federally designated critical access hospital with a 24-hour emergency department; inpatient and outpatient surgical and diagnostic services; cancer care; therapy and rehabilitation; wound care; the Almost Home Swing Bed program; and more. It was founded as Oconto Falls City Hospital in 1921 and became HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital in 2014 when it joined Hospital Sisters Health System (HSHS). As an affiliate of HSHS, HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital draws on the history of St. Francis of Assisi as it serves the health care needs of the region in Christ’s healing ministry, caring for all people. HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital also has five rural health center locations in affiliation with Prevea Health in Gillett, Lena, Mountain, Oconto Falls and Suring; and operates HSHS Pharmacies in Gillett and Oconto Falls, and HSHS Prescription Services (remote dispensing sites) in Lena, Mountain and Pulaski. In 2022, HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital was named a Top 100 Critical Access Hospital in the U.S. by The Chartis Center for Rural Health. For more information about St. Clare, please visit: www.stclarememorial.org.

About Hospital Sisters Health System
Hospital Sisters Health System’s (HSHS) mission is to reveal and embody Christ’s healing love for all people through our high quality, Franciscan health care ministry. HSHS provides state-of-the-art health care to our patients and is dedicated to serving all people, especially the most vulnerable, at each of our 15 Local Systems and physician practices in Illinois (Breese, Decatur, Effingham, Greenville, Highland, Litchfield, O’Fallon, Shelbyville and Springfield) and Wisconsin (Chippewa Falls, Eau Claire, Oconto Falls, Sheboygan and two in Green Bay). HSHS is sponsored by Hospital Sisters Ministries and Hospital Sisters of St. Francis is the founding institute. For more information about HSHS, visit www.hshs.org. For more information about Hospital Sisters of St. Francis, visit www.hospitalsisters.org.

Facade of St. Clare Memorial Hospital
Facade of St. Clare Memorial Hospital