Cooperative efforts improve compliance with acute stroke guidelines.
OBJECTIVE
Guidelines for emergency treatment of stroke are not always known or followed. Florida Medical Quality Assurance, Inc. collaborated with hospitals to determine how closely the current American Heart Association (AHA) and the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) guidelines were being followed and to improve compliance with these guidelines.


METHODS
Medical records of patients admitted for acute stroke to 32 hospitals were retrospectively reviewed for compliance with six quality indicators (QIs) on the basis of AHA and AHCA guidelines. Hospitals were provided feedback on their levels of guideline compliance, and they subsequently implemented measures to improve compliance. After 6 months, the records of patients admitted after the provision of feedback were reviewed for compliance with the same six QIs.


RESULTS
Compliance improved with regard to all QIs and was statistically significant for three of them.


CONCLUSIONS
Feedback on performance, coupled with proactive collaboration with emergency department staff, resulted in improved compliance with the stroke guidelines.
Albakri
Erfan A
EA
Florida Medical Quality Assurance, Inc., Tampa, FL 33607-4151, USA.
Richards
Ferdinand
F
Hall
Marie
M
Dion
Charles
C
Miranda
Luis S
LS
Turkel
Robert
R
Sand
Charles
C
Vasey
Paulette
P
McDonald
Kathie
K
Michelman
Mark
M
Smith
Zaid
Z
Davison
Karen
K
Pfannerstill
Lisa
L
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration*; D004638:Emergency Treatment / Q000592:standards*; D005246:Feedback; D005260:Female; D005431:Florida; D019983:Guideline Adherence; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D020521:Stroke / Q000628:therapy*