Jonesboro, AR – Contributed – The American Heart Association recognized St. Bernards Healthcare’s three hospitals in Jonesboro, Wynne and Pocahontas with eight quality achievement awards for providing evidence-based, high-quality heart attack and stroke care.
These awards, known as Get With The Guidelines®, demonstrate St. Bernards’ commitment to following up-to-date, research-based guidelines when treating heart disease (coronary artery disease, or CAD) and stroke, the number 1 and number 4 causes of death in the United States, respectively. By establishing measurable benchmarks, Get With The Guidelines seeks to save more lives while also creating shorter recovery times and fewer hospital readmissions for patients.
Max Arroyo, M.D., St. Bernards Chief of Cardiology, said the awards represent a multispecialty, comprehensive approach to heart and vascular care across the entire health system.
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“Our care processes begin well before a patient enters one of our emergency departments,” said Dr. Arroyo. “Earning recognition across all three of our hospitals demonstrates that whether patients are in Jonesboro, Wynne or Pocahontas, they will receive life-saving cardiovascular expertise.”
This year, the Association recognized St. Bernards Medical Center in Jonesboro, St. Bernards CrossRidge Community Hospital in Wynne and St. Bernards Five Rivers Medical Center in Pocahontas for their advanced clinical protocols.
Of note, St. Bernards Medical Center received four individual awards, including:
- Get With The Guidelines – CAD STEMI Receiving (Gold Plus)
- Get With The Guidelines – CAD NSTEMI (Gold)
- Get With The Guidelines – Stroke (Gold Plus)
- Get With The Guidelines – CAD Chest Pain (Silver Plus)
St. Bernards CrossRidge Community Hospital received two awards, including:
- Get With The Guidelines – Rural CAD STEMI (Gold)
- Get With The Guidelines – CAD STEMI Referring Center (Silver Plus)
St. Bernards Five Rivers Medical Center also received two awards, including:
- Get With The Guidelines – Rural CAD STEMI (Gold)
- Get With The Guidelines – Rural Stroke (Gold)
“These awards reflect St. Bernards Healthcare’s commitment to caring for people in their community who need cardiovascular care,” said Karen E. Joynt Maddox, M.D., MPH, chair of the American Heart Association Quality Oversight Committee. “By following the American Heart Association’s quality improvement protocols, St. Bernards can help advance our shared vision of better patient outcomes, fewer readmissions and lower mortality rates — a win for patients, families and health care systems.”
As background, St. Bernards Medical Center received its first Gold Plus recognition from the American Heart Association in 2015 for treating STEMIs (ST-elevation myocardial infarctions). A STEMI is a more severe type of heart attack, occurring when a coronary artery experiences a complete blockage.
In 2020, the hospital earned Gold status, the highest possible recognition, for treating NSTEMIs (non-ST-elevation myocardial infarctions). An NSTEMI occurs when an artery encounters a partial blockage, severely reducing blood flow.
In 2024, it achieved Gold Plus recognition for its treatment of stroke, where the brain experiences a loss of blood flow from a blocked or ruptured vessel. Lastly, 2026 marks the first year for the hospital to receive Chest Pain recognition.
St. Bernards CrossRidge Community Hospital and St. Bernards Five Rivers Medical Center both received Gold recognition for their initial treatment of patients experiencing STEMIs in a rural environment. CrossRidge was also honored for its transfer process of STEMI patients needing additional, specialized cardiovascular care.
Five Rivers, meanwhile, was recognized for its stabilizing treatment of rural patients experiencing stroke. The American Heart Association has awarded Five Rivers with consecutive heart and stroke accolades since at least 2018.
St. Bernards began its first heart catheterization procedures in 1983. Two years later, it brought the first heart surgery option to northeast Arkansas. After 40-plus years, it continues to evolve cardiovascular care in the region, from maintaining healthy hearts to providing advanced care for heart failure.
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