FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEDIA CONTACT: Florida Hospital Media Relations 407/303-1917

Society Contact:
Robert Weisenburger Lipetz
Executive Director
614-274-9710
director@scpcp.org

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FLORIDA HOSPITAL IS FIRST IN STATE TO RECEIVE CHEST PAIN CENTER ACCREDITATION

Orlando, FL - November 12, 2003 - The Society of Chest Pain Centers and Providers has granted the designation of Accredited Chest Pain Center to Florida Hospital - the first hospital in the state of Florida to receive such accreditation.

Florida Hospital was granted this designation by meeting or exceeding a wide set of stringent criteria and completing on-site evaluations by a review team from the Society of Chest Pain Centers and Providers.

"Florida Hospital performs nearly 17,000 complex cardiac procedures each year," said Danielle Johnson, RN, BSBM, administrative director of cardiovascular services at Florida Hospital. "With this type of proven track record, along with our dedicated cardiac team, this designation recognizes that Florida Hospital is a proven leader for cardiac care."

With the rise of Chest Pain Centers came the need to establish standards designed to improve the consistency and quality of care provided to patients. The Society's accreditation process insures centers meet or exceed quality-of-care measures in acute cardiac medicine.

The Chest Pain Center'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, when treatments are most effective, and to better monitor patients when it is not clear whether they are having a coronary event. Such observation helps ensure that a patient is neither sent home too early nor needlessly admitted.

Key areas in which a Chest Pain Center must demonstrate expertise include:

• Integrating the emergency department with the local Emergency Medical System
• Assessing, diagnosing, and treating patients quickly
• Effectively treating patients with low risk for acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and no assignable cause for their symptoms
• Having a functional design that promotes optimal patient care
• Insuring Chest Pain Center personnel competency and training
• Maintaining organizational structure and commitment
• Continually seeking to improve processes and procedures
• Supporting community outreach programs that educate the public to promptly seek medical care if they have display symptoms of a possible heart attack

For more information, please contact Florida Hospital Media Relations at 407-303-1917.

For more information on chest pain centers and accreditation, contact:
The Society of Chest Pain Centers and Providers
3000 W. Broad St., Box 9
Columbus, OH 43204
Telephone: 614-274-9710 Fax: 614-274-9716
Email: director@scpcp.org Website: www.scpcp.org

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This release is located on the Internet at: http://www.floridahospital.org/

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