Newswise — MAYWOOD, IL – For the eighth year in a row, Loyola University Medical Center has received the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With the Guidelines®-Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award.

The award recognizes Loyola’s commitment to providing the most appropriate stroke treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines based on the latest scientific evidence.

Loyola also was named to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Target: StrokeSM Honor Roll Elite. To qualify for the Honor Roll, hospitals must meet quality measures developed to reduce the time between the patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment with the clot-busting IV drug tPA. The drug is used to treat the most common type of stroke, called ischemic, which is caused by a blood clot. If given within 4.5 hours of an ischemic stroke, tPA can significantly reduce the effects of stroke and lessen the chance of permanent disability. Loyola earned the award by meeting quality achievement measures for the diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients at a set level for a designated period. Get With The Guidelines® helps hospital care teams ensure the care provided to patients is aligned with the latest research-based guidelines. Loyola’s Stroke Center offers a nationally recognized team of experts in every facet of stroke-related care, including emergency medicine, neurology, neurosurgery, neurophysiology, neuroradiology, rehabilitative services, social work, pharmacy and specialty nursing. Loyola’s Stroke Center also has received the Gold Seal of Approval® for stroke care from the Joint Commission. Loyola’s inpatient rehabilitation stroke specialty program recently was accredited for the third time in a row by CARF International, an independent, nonprofit accrediting body. Achieving accreditation as a stroke specialty program requires a center to meet standards above and beyond those required for accreditation in comprehensive inpatient rehabilitation.