Cardiac Arrest Centers
If you or a loved one should ever require emergency care for cardiac arrest, you will receive expert, technologically advanced care at John C. Lincoln Hospitals in Phoenix, Arizona.
John C. Lincoln Hospitals are certified as Cardiac Arrest Centers by the Arizona Department of Health Services. This important certification shows that our hospitals meet state standards for treating cardiac arrest patients.
Until recently, 50 percent of cardiac arrest patients resuscitated in the field did not survive to hospital discharge. Fortunately, things are changing: in the short time since the State of Arizona launched its Cardiac Arrest Center credentialing program, cardiac arrest survival rates in the state have improved by about 68 percent.
New Hypothermia Treatment
Cardiac Arrest Centers provide specialized care that increases survival rates. But that’s not their only goal. The patient’s quality of life after surviving a cardiac attack is just as important. For this reason, Cardiac Arrest Centers can induce mild hypothermia within the first hours after cardiac arrest—a new standard of care recommended by the American Heart Association.
Cooling the heart, brain and core body temperatures to 89-95 degrees Fahrenheit has been shown to help keep the brain stable and improve neurological recovery. It either prevents or mitigates permanent postanoxic (lack of oxygen) brain injury and may help preserve the heart and kidneys.
Other therapies available for cardiac arrest patients include:
- Early percutaneous intervention (procedures in which access to inner organs or other tissue is done via needle-puncture of the skin)
- Standardized pressure support.
- Standardized ventilation support.
- Close glucose (blood sugar) control.
- Standardized outcome measurement.
Cardiac Arrest Center Credentialing
The certified Cardiac Arrest Center designation denotes that a hospital has capabilities and technology needed to give patients the best possible care after an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.
According to the Arizona Department of Health Services Centers standards, certified Cardiac Arrest Centers must provide the following:
- A therapeutic hypothermia method for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.
- Around-the-clock cardiac intervention capability.
- A system for collecting data on cardiac arrest cases and sharing findings with the Cardiac Arrest Center Consortium.
For more information on Arizona Certified Cardiac Arrest Centers, visit www.azshare.gov.