Awards & Events

Boise, June, 2015 — Ada County Paramedics has been honored with the highest level of the American Heart Association’s (AHA) Mission: Lifeline^® EMS Award for patients seen in 2014. The prestigious “Gold” award recognizes the greatest level of success awarded by AHA in improving measures for patients with heart attacks— otherwise known as STEMI (ST Elevation Myocardial Infarction). Ada County Paramedics also received the Silver level award for patients seen in 2013.

“Ada County Paramedics is dedicated to providing the highest level of pre-hospital patient care available,” said Hadley Mayes, Public Information Officer for Ada County Paramedics. “The American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline award acknowledges Ada County Paramedics’ excellence in our STEMI patients’ care,” said Mayes.

Ada County Paramedics received the Mission: Lifeline Gold award for having demonstrated at least 75 percent compliance for each required achievement measure for two years. Ada County Paramedics treated 61 STEMI patients over the course of 2014.

“Since [paramedics] often are the first medical point of contact, they can shave precious minutes of life-saving treatment time by activating the emergency response system that alerts hospitals, said Nancy Brown, Chief Executive Officer of the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. “We applaud Ada County Paramedics for achieving this award.”

A STEMI heart attack is caused by complete blockage of blood flow to the heart and requires expedited treatment to prevent death. Providers can either surgically open the blocked vessel or give clot-busting medication. Unfortunately, a significant number of patients in the US don’t receive prompt enough “reperfusion therapy,” to restore blood flow.

“We’re honored to be recognized at this level, but the most rewarding part is seeing the lives we’re positively impacting,” said Mayes.

About Ada County Paramedics

For more information, visit Ada County Paramedics or call (208) 287-2962. You can also like Ada County Paramedics on Facebook, www.Facebook.com/AdaCountyParamedic or follow them on Twitter at www.twitter.com/AdaParamedics.

About Mission: Lifeline

The American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline^® program helps hospitals and emergency medical services develop systems of care that follow proven standards and procedures for STEMI patients. The program works by mobilizing

teams across the continuum of care to implement American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology clinical treatment guidelines. For more information, visit heart.org/missionlifeline and heart.org/quality.