Officials at Good Shepherd Medical Center announced today that it has received full Heart Failure Accreditation status from the Society of Chest Pain Centers. This accreditation is the first of its kind to be received by any institution in East Texas and makes Good Shepherd one of seven facilities in the state of Texas to achieve this status.

Heart failure is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States. Approximately five million patients in the United States have heart failure. In addition, heart failure patients are responsible for 12 to 15 million physician office visits per year and 6.5 million hospital days.

The Society of Chest Pain Center’s goal is to help facilities manage the heart failure patient more efficiently and improve patient outcomes. The SCPC is an international not-for-profit organization which focuses on transforming cardiovascular care by assisting facilities in their effort to create communities of excellence focused on quality, cost and patient satisfaction. As the only cross-specialty organization, SCPC provides the support needed for individual hospitals and hospital systems to effectively bridge existing gaps in treatment by providing the tools, education and support necessary to successfully navigate the changing face of healthcare.

To receive Heart Failure Accreditation, Good Shepherd engaged in rigorous reevaluation and refinement of its cardiac care processes in order to integrate the healthcare industry’s successful practices and newest paradigms into its processes for the care of heart failure patients. Good Shepherd’s protocol-driven and systematic approach to patient management allows physicians to reduce time to treatment and to risk stratify patients to decrease their length of stay.

Good Shepherd Medical Center demonstrated our expertise and commitment to quality patient care by meeting or exceeding a wide set of stringent criteria and undergoing an onsite review by a team of SCPC’s accreditation review specialists:
• Emergency Department Integration with Emergency Medical Services
• Emergency Assessment of Patients with Symptoms of Acute Decompensated Heart Failure-Diagnosis
• Risk Stratification of the Heart Failure Patient
• Treatment for Patients Presenting to the Emergency Department in Heart Failure
• Heart Failure Discharge Criteria from the Emergency Department, Observation Stay or Inpatient Stay
• Heart Failure Patient Education in the Emergency Department, Observation and Inpatient Unit
• Personnel, Competencies and Training
• Process Improvement
• Organizational Structure and Commitment
• Heart Failure Community Outreach

Recognizing that heart failure is a leading cause of mortality in the U.S., Good Shepherd Medical Center’s new status in Heart Failure Accreditation demonstrates its commitment to effectively managing the increasing numbers of heart failure patients presenting to emergency departments. By being Heart Failure Accredited, Good Shepherd has enhanced the quality of care for heart failure patients and has demonstrated its commitment to higher standards.

“Heart failure is currently the only cardiac disease that continues to increase in both incidence and prevalence” said Ed Banos, Good Shepherd Medical Center CEO. “More Medicare dollars are spent for diagnosis and treatment of heart failure than any other disease. Here at Good Shepherd, we are pleased to have taken measures through Heart Failure Accreditation to do our part to improve the lives of our heart failure patients. We are very proud for our renowned Good Shepherd Cardiology team to now be able to boast this status as well.”

Good Shepherd Medical Center’s Heart Failure Accreditation status was achieved on September 19, 2011.

LONGVIEW (January 27, 2009) – Good Shepherd Medical Center announced today that it is among the nation’s top five percent of hospitals, according to an independent study of mortality and complication rates for nearly 5,000 hospitals released today by HealthGrades, the nation’s leading healthcare ratings company.

Good Shepherd Medical Center has achieved HealthGrades’ 2009 Distinguished Hospital Award for Clinical ExcellenceTM based on its clinical quality performance. According to the HealthGrades study, patients admitted to a hospital receiving this award are, on average, 27 percent less likely to die and 8 percent less likely to suffer from a major complication. This year, only 270 of the nation’s nearly 5,000 non-federal hospitals will receive this distinction.

The HealthGrades study also found that Distinguished Hospitals for Clinical Excellence are improving their patient outcomes at a greater rate in more procedures and diagnoses than all other hospitals, lowering risk-adjusted mortality rates over the years 2005, 2006 and 2007 by an average of 18%.

The level of quality healthcare practiced by the medical staff and employees of Good Shepherd Medical Center is unsurpassed in our region,” said Ed Banos, President and CEO of Good Shepherd Health System. “The awards we continue to receive from HealthGrades are evidence of a truly talented and dedicated staff. It is because of their hard work and commitment that our patients and their families receive healthcare services that are among the best in the nation.”

“The hospitals that have been designated as Distinguished Hospitals for Clinical ExcellenceTM have, across the board, been leaders in their commitment to delivering the highest quality patient care. Consumers can choose where they receive their healthcare and our study again highlights the tremendous disparity in quality between hospitals,” said Rick May, MD, HealthGrades senior physician consultant.

In October, Good Shepherd received HealthGrades 2009 Specialty Excellence awards in four areas: Coronary Intervention, Spine Surgery, Orthopaedic Surgery and General Surgery. Five-star ratings in 21 areas were also received, including treatment of stroke, treatment of respiratory failure, treatment of heart attack and treatment of heart failure. Good Shepherd previously was awarded the Distinguished Hospital for Clinical Excellence in years 2003 through 2007.

This is the seventh year that HealthGrades has independently analyzed the clinical quality performance of all non-federal hospitals across the country in 26 procedures and diagnoses. In the Distinguished Hospital Study, the company reviewed nearly 41 million hospitalization records from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, over the years 2005, 2006 and 2007. All hospitals that participate in the Medicare program were part of the independent study. Hospitals that receive the HealthGrades Distinguished Hospital Award for Clinical ExcellenceTM are those hospitals that rank in the top five percent when all 26 individual scores are aggregated into an overall score.

Short has also served as director of nursing operations and most recently, divisional director of nursing operations and rehabilitative services. In his new role as vice president, he will oversee emergency services, patient flow operations, environmental services, and inpatient rehabilitative services.

His educational background includes a bachelor of science degree in health studies and a master of science degree in physical therapy, both from Boston University. He also holds a master of business administration degree from the University of Texas at Tyler. Short is a fellow with the American College of Healthcare Executives, serves on the finance committee of the Texas Physical Therapy Association, and currently participates in Leadership Longview.

He and his wife, Tammi, reside in Longview and have three children.

According to the 2009 HealthGrades’ ratings, Good Shepherd Medical Center also received five-star ratings for clinical excellence in a number of key areas including: treatment of heart attack and heart failure, joint replacement, hip fracture repair, treatment of stroke, treatment of pneumonia and treatment of respiratory failure.

“These awards indicate Good Shepherd’s ongoing commitment to serving our community with the highest quality of care. The Medical Center’s dedicated staff is solely responsible for the ongoing achievements that rank us among the leading providers of health care,” said Ed Banos, President and CEO of Good Shepherd Health System.

These findings were included in the eleventh annual HealthGrades Hospital Quality in America Study, which analyzed more than 41 million Medicare hospitalization records from 2005 to 2007 at the nation’s approximately 5,000 non-federal hospitals. Also according to the study, patients treated at the nation’s top-rated hospitals have a 70 percent lower chance of dying compared with the lowest-rated hospitals across 17 common procedures and conditions, ranging from heart attack and pneumonia care to respiratory failure.

While overall death rates declined from 2005 to 2007, the nation’s best-performing hospitals were able to reduce preventable deaths at a much faster rate than poor-performing hospitals, resulting in large state, regional and hospital-to-hospital variations in the quality of patient care, the study found.

In addition to a state-of-the-art fitness facility, the Institute also offers the Healthy Living Spa and Healthy Living Cafe, both of which are open to the general public. The Healthy Living Spa is a full-service day spa, designed to promote a healthy, stress-managed life. Services include a range of specially designed massages, natural manicures, pedicures and facials. A tranquil relaxation room inspires all of the senses and is available to be utilized before or after a spa treatment.

The Healthy Living Cafe is operated by Gerald Rodriguez, of Longview’s Tyler Street Bistro and Gerald’s. The Healthy Living Cafe will feature heart-healthy daily lunch specials, and will be open for business weekdays from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

While the spa and cafe are open to the public, members of the Institute will receive discounts. For more information on how you may join the Institute for Healthy Living, please contact a member associate at (903) 323-6500 or visit us at 611 E. Hawkins Pkwy. during business hours.

“We are pleased to have recruited a COO with the experience that Troy Thibodeaux brings to the organization,” said Ed Banos, president and chief executive officer. “His leadership and operational experience will be valuable as we continue to evaluate strategies to enhance and grow the Health System.”

Most recently, he served as vice president of operations for East Texas Medical Center, where he was responsible for planning, organizing and directing the day to day operations of nursing, clinical, ancillary and support departments of the hospital to include Surgical Services, Pre-Op, Recovery, Same Day Surgery, Anesthesia, Food Services, Dietary, Laundry, Sleep Disorders Center, Pain Center, Neurological Institute, and Urology Institute.
Throughout his healthcare career, Troy has served in various operational leadership positions for other well respected organizations including Texas Children’s Hospital, the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center and the Baylor College of Medicine all located in Houston.

He received a bachelor of arts in psychology from Southwest Texas State University and a Masters in Health Care Administration from Texas Woman’s University. He is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and was a Regents Award Recipient in October of 2007. He currently serves on the Leadership Development Council and the Council on Policy Development for the Texas Hospital Association and has been involved in the community volunteering for organizations including Boy’s & Girl’s Club of East Texas, American Cancer Society, and United Way.

Please join us for an open house celebrating the introduction of

The Breast Center at Good Shepherd
Thursday, August 7, 2008 at 4:00 p.m.
Medical Plaza III, First Floor
705 E. Marshall Avenue