QAC nationally recognized
for commitment to quality care for heart attacks & strokes by AHA
The Queen Anne’s County Department of Emergency Services has received its sixth American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline® EMS Gold achievement award for its commitment to offering rapid, research-based care to people experiencing the most severe form of heart attack and stroke.
Emergency medical services staff can begin treatment when they arrive — up to an hour sooner than if someone goes to the hospital by car. EMS staff are also trained to provide resuscitation efforts to someone whose heart has stopped. People who arrive by ambulance may also receive faster treatment at the hospital.
Mission: Lifeline EMS® is the American Heart Association’s national initiative to advance the system of care for patients with high-risk, time-sensitive disease states, such as severe heart attacks and strokes. The program helps reduce barriers to prompt treatment — starting from when 911 is called, to EMS transport and continuing through hospital treatment and discharge. Optimal care for heart attack and stroke patients takes coordination between the individual prehospital providers and health care systems.
For more information about The American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline EMS® program visit heart.org. For more information about Queen Anne’s County Department of Emergency Services visit qacdes.org or follow then on social media @QACDES.
Stoke and Heart Facts
While heart attacks are serious, more and more people are surviving this alarming medical event than just a few decades ago. According to Harvard Medical School, the survival rate from heart attacks is 90 percent; it used to be just 50 percent. This increase in survival rates is attributed to a greater understanding of the role of blood clots in heart attacks and the rise of the usage of aspirin, clot-busting drugs, and artery-opening angioplasty in the early stages of heart attacks.
Learn about the heart attack symptoms to watch for from the American Heart Association.
Chest discomfort. Most heart attacks involve discomfort in the center of the chest that lasts more than a few minutes… or it may go away and then return. It can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain.
Discomfort in other areas of the upper body. Symptoms can include pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw, or stomach.
Shortness of breath. This can occur with or without chest discomfort.
Other signs. Other possible signs include breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea, or lightheadedness.
Get F.A.S.T. with Strokes
Use the F.A.S.T warning signs from the American Heart Association to help determine if someone is having a stroke:
F = Face Drooping – Does one side of the face droop or is it numb? Ask the person to smile. Is the person’s smile uneven?
A = Arm Weakness – Is one arm weak or numb? Ask the person to raise both arms. Does one arm drift downward?
S = Speech Difficulty – Is speech slurred?
T = Time to call 911
Other Stroke symptoms include:
NUMBNESS or weakness of face, arm, or leg, especially on one side of the body
CONFUSION. Trouble speaking or understanding speech
TROUBLE SEEING in one or both eyes
TROUBLE WALKING. Dizziness, loss of balance or coordination
SEVERE HEADACHE with no known cause