FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Wendy Kelly
Director Marketing
252-449-9184
[email protected]

NAGS HEAD, N.C. — August 21, 2020 — The Outer Banks Hospital recognized team members on Thursday, August 20, for their recent achievement of the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines® Stroke Silver Plus and Target: Stroke Elite Honor Roll quality achievement awards. The awards acknowledge TOBH’s commitment to ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines based on the latest scientific evidence.

“We are pleased to recognize The Outer Banks Hospital for [its] commitment to stroke care,” said Lee H. Schwamm, MD, National Chairperson of the Quality Oversight Committee; Executive Vice Chairman, Department of Neurology; and Director of Acute Stroke Services, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts. “Research has shown that hospitals adhering to clinical measures through the Get With The Guidelines quality improvement initiative can often see fewer readmissions and lower mortality rates.”

TOBH earned the award by meeting specific quality achievement measures for the diagnosis and treatment of stroke. Some of the measures include evaluation of proper medication use and other stroke treatments aligned with the most up-to-date, evidence-based guidelines, along with the goal of speeding recovery and reducing death and disability for stroke patients.

“This award belongs to everyone here at TOBH because coordinating care is a team effort,” said Marcia Bryant, vice president clinical operations at TOBH. “Each individual’s role is important in and of itself, and then it’s the combination of those skills and services that make a stroke team effective in treating stroke patients.”

“I’m so proud of every single person’s contribution and especially the active role taken to educate our community about stroke prevention and recognition,” said Devereux Grindle, RN, TOBH Director of Quality, Quality Management. “We’ve heard from numerous community members about how this education has personally touched and saved lives.”

Photo Caption:

Outer Banks Hospital and medical group team members gather to recognize the hard work and dedication of so many in achieving the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association Get With The Guidelines® Stroke Silver Plus and Target: Stroke Elite Honor Roll quality awards. Pictured left to right are: Brittany Raffa, outreach program coordinator; Amy Montgomery, senior administrator of operations; Lynne Miles, OBMG senior administrator of operations; Debra Johnson, director of clinical support services, Matt Chovaz, MD, Linda Smith, RN, stroke coordinator; Summer Carmichael, RN; Robin South, RN nurse navigator; Devereux Grindle, director of quality; Marcia Bryant, vice president of clinical operations; Ronnie Sloan, president, and Vance Collins, director of pharmacy.