National Recognition for Stroke, Resuscitation and Cardiovascular Care

We have received the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines® – Stroke Gold Plus quality achievement award for its commitment to ensuring people experiencing stroke receive timely, appropriate treatment based on nationally recognized, research-based guidelines, ultimately helping to save lives and reduce disability. In addition, we were also recognized with other awards for resuscitation and CPR.

Stroke is the No. 4 cause of death and a leading cause of disability in the U.S, according to the American Heart Association’s 2026 Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics Report. A stroke occurs when a blood vessel supplying the brain is blocked by a clot or ruptures, preventing blood and oxygen from reaching brain tissue. When this happens, brain cells begin to die. Early detection and rapid treatment are critical to improving survival, minimizing disability and supporting faster recovery.

Get With The Guidelines brings the expertise of the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association into hospitals nationwide, helping ensure patient care is aligned with the latest research- and evidence-based guidelines. Get With The Guidelines – Stroke is an in-hospital program designed to improve stroke care through consistent adherence to these guidelines, which can minimize long-term effects of stroke and help prevent death.

“Confluence Health is committed to improving patient care by adhering to the latest treatment guidelines,” said Dr. Andrew Jones, CEO of Confluence Health. “Get With The Guidelines helps our teams put proven science into practice every day. Research shows this approach can support better recovery, with the ultimate goal of helping people in North Central Washington live longer, healthier lives.”

Each year, participating hospitals qualify for the award by demonstrating how their organization has committed to providing quality stroke care. In addition to following clinical treatment guidelines, Get With The Guidelines participants also provide education to help people manage their recovery and ongoing health at home.

“We are proud to recognize Confluence Health Hospital for its commitment to caring for people experiencing stroke,” said Steven Messe, M.D., volunteer chair of the American Heart Association Stroke System of Care Advisory Group. “Participation in Get With The Guidelines is associated with improved patient outcomes, including greater likelihood of being discharged home, fewer readmissions, and lower mortality rates — a meaningful benefit for health care systems, families and communities.”

Confluence Health also earned the American Heart Association’s Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite award, which recognizes hospitals that meet specific criteria for reducing the time between an eligible patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment with thrombolytic, or clot-busting, therapy.

The organization also received the American Heart Association’s Target: Type 2 Diabetes™ Honor Roll award, which 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 stroke. In addition, Confluence Health was recognized through the Get With The Guidelines® – Resuscitation program, receiving both Target CPR and Bronze achievement awards for its work to improve outcomes for patients who experience inhospital cardiac arrest, which remains a major clinical and quality of care challenge in U.S. hospitals. According to the American Heart Association’s 2026 Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics Report, about one in four adults who experience in-hospital cardiac arrest survive to hospital discharge — a rate that has improved over time and is substantially higher than survival after out-of-hospital arrest. The ability to consistently perform high-quality CPR is crucial for improving cardiac arrest outcomes; the difference between CPR and high-quality CPR is survival. However, research shows not all patients receive the necessary high-quality CPR to optimize their chances of survival. The Target: CPR award was developed to recognize hospitals that actively monitor CPR quality during in-hospital cardiac arrest events. Participating hospitals demonstrate a commitment to saving lives by ensuring CPR delivery aligns with the most current, science-based guidelines from the American Heart Association.

“These awards reflect Confluence Health’s commitment to caring for people in their community who need cardiovascular care,” said Karen E. Joynt Maddox, M.D., MPH, chair of the American Heart Association Quality Oversight Committee. “By following the American Heart Association’s quality improvement protocols, Confluence Health can help advance our shared vision of better patient outcomes, fewer readmissions, and lower mortality rates — a win for patients, families, and health care systems.”