WVU Medicine Golisano Children’s nationally recognized for commitment to improving cardiac arrest survival rates

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – WVU Medicine Golisano Children’s received American Heart Association awards for commitment to ensuring young patients who experience in-hospital cardiac arrest receive life-saving care.  

This year, WVU Medicine Golisano Children’s received the Get With The Guidelines – Resuscitation Gold Award for the neonate and infant populations and Target: Survival – Resuscitation for pediatrics  

“All of our WVU Medicine Golisano Children’s team is committed to giving every newborn the best possible start in life,” Christopher Mascio, M.D., executive director of the WVU Medicine Golisano Children’s Heart Center and executive chair of the WVU Golisano Children’s Institute, said. “We work together across all specialties to provide the highest level of care to our most vulnerable patients.”  

In‑hospital cardiac arrest remains a major clinical and quality‑of‑care challenge in hospitals across the United States. According to the American Heart Association, studies show that the rate of patients who experience in-hospital cardiac arrests and survive to hospital discharge has improved over time.  

Get With The Guidelines was developed by the American Heart Association to help hospitals nationwide save lives by providing evidence-based treatment guidelines and quality-improvement tools for resuscitation care. 

A Gold Award recognizes hospitals for following patient safety protocols, implementing rapid medical emergency team responses, and providing high-quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation and post-resuscitation care. It also highlights the exceptional work of clinical teams and the collaborative efforts that support high-quality care across the organization. 

Teams that receive Target: Survival awards also have a cardiac arrest survival rate greater than 60 percent of all hospitals nationwide that participate in Get With the Guidelines – Resuscitation. 

“Our team of experts puts the latest treatment guidelines to work for our patients every day,” Dr. Mascio said. “They are cared for in a compassionate environment by dedicated professionals who put safety at the forefront of everything we do. This means that more families in West Virginia and the surrounding region are cared for close to home, and our children will have healthier futures.”  

About Get With The Guidelines
Get With The Guidelines® is the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s hospital-based quality improvement program that provides hospitals with the latest research-based guidelines. Developed with the goal of saving lives and hastening recovery, Get With The Guidelines has touched the lives of more than 18 million patients since 2001. For more information, visit Heart.org.