Covenant Health Serves West Texas as Only Stroke Center in the Region
Covenant Medical Center has been recertified by Joint Commission as the first and only Comprehensive Stroke Center in West Texas.
Comprehensive Stroke Centers offer the highest level of stroke care and can treat the most complex stroke cases.
“This was the culmination of significant continued efforts by the Covenant Health caregivers to maintain the only such program in the region,” Interventional Radiologist Dr. Thomas Windisch said. “This recertification shows we are providing excellence in all aspects of stroke care, from acute intervention to rehabilitation and prevention in patients experiencing ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke.”
Covenant Medical Center is one of only 45 comprehensive stroke centers in the state, and one of only 14 certified by Joint Commission. It is the only comprehensive stroke center within 300 miles, in any direction.
Every two years, hospitals must undergo rigorous examination to maintain their status. The Joint Commission surveyors are experts in stroke care and are an impartial review of the program to ensure the hospital is meeting quality standards to care for stroke patients. During the visit, a team of Joint Commission surveyors evaluated compliance with related certification standards including 24/7 physician coverage to care for the sickest stroke patients.
Stroke patients who receive faster treatment are more likely to go home with fewer deficits. Having a Comprehensive Stroke Center in West Texas allows stroke patients to receive the emergent care they need as quickly as possible.
This designation could not have been achieved without our partnership with Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center and Texas Tech Physicians.
TTUHSC neurology faculty and residents participate in research, respond to stroke alerts in the emergency department, and routinely cover stroke call at Covenant Medical Center.
Covenant Medical Center’s stroke program medical director is Texas Tech Physicians Dr. Saif Bushnaq.
For more information, please visit The Joint Commission website.
About Covenant Health:
As the home of compassionate care and health excellence, it is Covenant Health’s vision to create Health for a Better World. Covenant Health is home to the only free-standing children’s hospital in West Texas, the only certified stroke center, and the best hospital in the Panhandle Plains region as voted by U.S. News & World Report. For more than 100 years our pioneering spirit has been moving us forward, bringing world-class research and the most advanced treatments to West Texas and eastern New Mexico. Our connected health network of eight hospitals, and more than 6,000 caregivers allows us to provide our patients with the excellent care they deserve, with more locations, doctors, and specialists. To learn more about Covenant Health, please visit covenanthealth.org or our Facebook, LinkedIn, or Twitter, pages.
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