Being recognized for giving excellent patient care is the greatest honor a hospital can receive. Which is why I’m extremely proud to share that UnityPoint Health – Trinity Regional Medical Center has recently been recognized by two separate entities for the outstanding heart care we provide.

Trinity Regional Medical Center was recognized by the American College of Cardiology for the 2020 NCDR Chest Pain — MI Registry Platinum Performance Achievement Award.

As well as, we received the Mission: Lifeline Gold Plus Receiving Achievement Award through the American Heart Association for our accomplishment in the Get with the Guidelines quality program.

While being honored among the nation’s top performing hospitals for caring for heart attacks is very exciting, what really gets us excited is seeing how we’re affecting lives and keeping care close to home. We’re the heart hospital serving a 60 miles radius including: Clarion, Humboldt, Pocahontas, Sac City and Webster City.

We hope you never experience a heart attack, but find comfort in knowing the process and coordination that takes place is one of the best in the nation, should you or a loved end up needing our care. Our Cardiac Catheterization Lab team works in conjunction with cardiologists and surgeons from Iowa Heart Center, local paramedics, and Trinity’s ER team, from the time a patient or loved one calls 911.

When the ambulance arrives, paramedics perform an EKG on site. The EKG is immediately interpreted, and the EKG is sent electronically to the cardiologist for review who activates the Cath Lab Team who arrive within 30 minutes. When the patient arrives to Trinity’s ER they are brought straight back to the Cath Lab and immediately prepped for intervention. The vessel causing the heart attack is identified within 10 minutes and opened within the next 10 minutes. While patients are usually awake during the procedure, their pain is typically gone as soon as the heart attack is stopped. The interventional cardiologists typically access the heart through the wrist which allows for a very quick recovery.

After the procedure, the patient’s family is able to be at their bedside almost immediately so the physician can share results. Post-operative care is usually completed in less than four hours and the patient is back on his/her feet and able to walk around. The patient is sent to CCU for observations for 48 hours, new medications are administered, heart rhythm monitored, Cardiac Rehab nurses visit the patient the day following their procedure to discuss diet, medication, exercise and rehabilitation options. Depending on the type of work the patient does, the patient can return to work only a few days after their heat attack (office work sooner, heavy physical labor around one to-two weeks). It takes seamless coordination to ensure each patient gets the appropriate level of care at the right time and place. We know every second counts – especially when it comes to emergencies like heart attacks. Our team of cardiologists, vascular surgeons, interventional radiologists, nurses and other heart health professionals are committed to providing comprehensive heart care tailored to diagnose, treat, educate and rehabilitate.

Please join me in congratulating and thanking Dr. Joseph Cookman, Dr. Mike Chua Chiaco, Dr. John Justice and the Iowa Heart team; and all our outstanding team members in the Emergency Room, Cardiac Rehab, Critical Care Unit, Acute Care Unit and quality improvement department for their commitment to providing top-notch heart care to our communities.

Leah Glasgo is the president and chief executive officer of UnityPoint Health – Fort Dodge.