The American College of Cardiology (ACC)’s new accreditation program, HeartCARE Center: National Distinction of Excellence, will be designated “forward thinking” hospitals and healthcare systems that demonstrate excellence in cardiovascular care and also “advance the cause of sustainable quality improvement.”
The HeartCARE Center designation is now the highest a hospital or healthcare system can receive from the ACC.
To be eligible for the designation, hospitals and healthcare systems must have two earned CV accreditations offered by the ACC, a third earned CV accreditation offered by ACC or participation in an NCDR registry. Other requirements for eligibility include participating in other targeted quality improvement efforts that “are designed to help hospitals and institutions close gaps in guideline-based care.”
“Every day hospitals are demonstrating their commitment to quality cardiovascular care by meeting accreditation criteria and through their ongoing performance measurement in registry reporting,” said Phillip Levy, MD, MPH, chair of ACC’s Accreditation Management Board, in a statement. “The ACC’s new HeartCARE Center: National Distinction of Excellence program is designed to shine a light on the elite group of U.S. hospitals that are going above and beyond to ensure each patient that comes through their doors has access to consistent, highest-quality cardiovascular care.”
As a senior news writer for TriMed, Subrata covers cardiology, clinical innovation and healthcare business. She has a master’s degree in communication management and 12 years of experience in journalism and public relations.