When you, or someone close to you, suffers a heart attack, you want the best possible emergency services available.  For the second consecutive year, Fishers Fire and Emergency Services earned the American Heart Association’s EMS Gold Award.
Fishers’ local EMS operation was awarded this honor because of quality measures implemented in the treatment of patients experiencing severe heart attacks.

You can read the entire news release from the Fishers Fire Department below.

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For the second year in a row, Fishers Fire and Emergency Services has received the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline^® EMS Gold Award for implementing quality measures for the treatment of patients who experience severe heart attacks for the second year in a row.

Every year, more than 250,000 people experience a STEMI, or ST Elevation Myocardial Infarction. STEMI is a type of heart attack caused by a complete blockage of blood flow to the heart that requires rapid treatment. To prevent death, it’s critical to restore blood flow as quickly as possible, either surgically opening or by giving clot-busting medication.

Fire Chief Steven Orusa believes, “We are blessed in the City of Fishers to have such an effective continuum of care for our heart attack patients.  The highly trained men and women of our fire department combined with strategically located heart hospitals make a difference in patient outcomes.  This partnership provides the citizens of Fishers with one of the highest survival rates in the country.”

Emergency Medical System providers are vital to the success of Mission: Lifeline. EMS agencies provide access to 12-lead ECG machines (devices that measures the electrical activity of the heartbeat and can help medical personnel determine if a heart attack has occurred), and follow protocols derived from American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology guidelines. The correct tools and training allow EMS providers to rapidly identify the STEMI, promptly notify the medical center, and trigger and early response from the awaiting hospital personnel.

“We are pleased to be recognized for the quality of our care, but our reward is in the successful recovery of our patients and the continued dedication in the reduction of those who don’t.” said EMS Division Chief Steve Davison.

Agencies that receive the Mission: Lifeline Gold award have demonstrated at least 75 percent compliance for each required achievement measure for two years and treated at least eight STEMI patients for each year.

The Fishers Department of  Fire and Emergency Services is dedicated to making our unit among the best in the country, and the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline program is helping us accomplish that by implementing processes for improving STEMI systems of care with the goal of improving the quality of care for all STEMI patients,” said EMS Chief Steve Davsion. “We are pleased to be recognized for our dedication and achievements in emergency medical care for STEMI patients.”