The UConn John Dempsey Hospital announced that it has earned The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval^® and the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Heart-Check mark for Advanced Certification for Primary Stroke Centers. The Gold Seal of Approval^® and the Heart-Check mark represent symbols of quality from their respective organizations.

Joint Commission experts evaluated compliance with stroke-related standards and requirements, including program management, the delivery of clinical care and performance improvement.

“John Dempsey Hospital has thoroughly demonstrated the greatest level of commitment to the care of stroke patients through its Advanced Certification for Primary Stroke Centers,” said Patrick Phelan, executive director, Hospital Business Development, The Joint Commission. “We commend UConn Health and its hospital for becoming a leader in stroke care, potentially providing a higher standard of service for stroke patients in its community.”

Established in 2003, Advanced Certification for Primary Stroke Centers is awarded for a two-year period to Joint Commission-accredited acute care hospitals. UConn Health’s is a primary stroke center with endovascular capabilities.

“Dr. Sanjay Mittal, Dr. Ketan Bulsara, Jen Sposito and their team have built a program which recognizes UConn as a leader in stroke care,” says Debra Abromaitis, UConn Health interim compliance officer.  “John Dempsey Hospital provides a fast, efficient, and very high quality of care as recognized by our recent highly successful stroke certification survey.”

Stroke is the fifth leading cause of death and a leading cause of adult disability in the United States, according to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. On average, someone suffers a stroke every 40 seconds; someone dies of a stroke every four minutes, and 795,000 people suffer a new or recurrent stroke each year.