Sutter Medical Center First in California to Receive Atrial Fibrillation Certification

SACRAMENTO, Calif., Feb. 7, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Sutter Medical Center, Sacramento became the second cardiac care center in the nation and the first in California to receive full Atrial Fibrillation Certification from the Society of Chest Pain Centers (SCPC). The announcement comes as the nation ushers in American Heart Month.

Atrial fibrillation, or A-Fib, is the most common cardiac arrhythmia that can lead to stroke and possibly death. Nearly 3 million patients in the United States have atrial fibrillation and the numbers are increasing as the population ages. With the atrial fibrillation certification, SCPC's goal is to help facilities evaluate and manage the atrial fibrillation patient more effectively, improve patient outcomes, and educate patients and healthcare providers to better care for this disease.

"Over the years, our heart and stroke teams have developed a program that offers many options for our patients who have atrial fibrillation, and we have become a national leader in the recognition, management and treatment for this serious health disease," said David Roberts, M.D., medical director of the Sutter Heart & Vascular Institute. "We are pleased to receive this important certification that recognizes our unique expertise in atrial fibrillation."

Sutter Medical Center offers a variety of treatment options for atrial fibrillation, including a large-volume electrophysiology program offering atrial fibrillation ablation as well as surgical options that include both the traditional Maze procedure and the less-invasive, thoracoscopic mini-Maze procedure.

Sutter Medical Center's protocol-driven and systematic approach to patient evaluation and management allows physicians to reduce time to treatment and to risk-stratify patients to decrease their length of stay in the emergency department and the hospital, the SCPC said.

In addition to the variety of treatments for atrial fibrillation, the Sutter Medical Center program met SCPC's high certification standards for multiple reasons, including:

• Volume and successful outcomes for patients with atrial fibrillation as a primary and secondary diagnosis;
• Education of emergency medical services, hospital staff and physicians in regard to recognition, management and treatment options for atrial fibrillation;
• Community outreach with cardiac care services;
• A Certified Chest Pain and Stroke Center to treat this patient population.

For more information on Sutter Heart & Vascular Institute, visit www.suttermedicalcenter.org. For more information on SCPC, visit www.scpcp.org or call 1-877-271-4176.

CONTACT: Gary Zavoral
(916) 454-6825

SOURCE Sutter Heart & Vascular Institute