The Society of Chest Pain Centers

The Society of Chest Pain Centers (SCPC), an international organization committed to the elimination of heart disease as the number one cause of death, and The American Heart Association a national organization dedicated to the prevention of cardiovascular diseases and stroke, today announced they will be joining efforts to save even more lives. The joint agreement seeks to improve cardiac care, specifically the care of patients suffering from a specific type of heart attack known as ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction or “STEMI”. Both organizations will see this goal accomplished by establishing a collaborative framework for hospital accreditation that meets criteria as set forth in the American Heart Association initiative “Mission: Lifeline”.  “Each year, almost 250,000 people suffer from a deadly type of heart attack known in the medical community as a STEMI, which occurs when blood flow is completely blocked to the heart,” said Ralph Sacco, M.D., president of the American Heart Association. “Restoring blood flow to the heart is crucial in achieving optimal outcomes but 30% of these patients receive no reperfusion treatment at all.” In an effort to improve the processes surrounding the care of the STEMI patient, the American Heart Association launched Mission: Lifeline in 2007. Mission: Lifeline seeks to improve these outcomes by breaking down and eliminating the obstacles that keep patients from accessing and receiving appropriate treatments. Mission: Lifeline systems start with the 9-1-1 call or at the point of entry in the emergency system, continues through the catheterization laboratory and through hospital discharge by promoting best practices that are identified using the very latest scientific evidencebased treatment for STEMI. Mission: Lifeline systems currently cover over 56% of the United States. Mortality rates from STEMI have decreased from 5.8% in 2008 to 4.8% in 2010.