Cranberry EMS earns award for heart attack care
Cranberry Township Emergency Medical Service was awarded the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline EMS Gold Plus achievement award for implementing quality improvement measures for the treatment of patients who experience severe heart attacks.
The award recognizes agencies for excellent treatment of heart attack patients and focuses on “early recognition of heart attacks and the activation of the appropriate team at the hospital,” said Matt Nickl, chief and executive director of Cranberry EMS.
“We are extremely honored to be awarded by the American Heart Association for our work to help bring the highest level of care when treating and transporting patients who have experienced severe heart attacks,” Nickl said in a statement. “Our entire organization works very hard on our heart care protocols, and it’s nice to see their efforts recognized with such a prestigious award.”
The award particularly honors excellent care for people experiencing an ST-elevation myocardial infarction, the deadliest type of heart attack caused by a blockage of blood flow to the heart.
Cranberry EMS responded to 127 cardiac calls in 2021.
When called to assist someone with chest pain, Nickl explained, the service begins with a 12-lead electrocardiogram test.
“We have to transmit that EKG from the scene or ambulance to the hospital,” Nickl said. “We call the hospital, and we say, ‘This is heart attack, we are going to need the cardiac catheterization team.’
“Typically, if it’s that bad and is an actual heart attack, we will take them right to the ‘cath’ lab. That is where they do the procedure to see if they can unblock the vessel in the heart or if they have to go in and do bypass surgery. They start their interventions from there.”
