FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 14, 2009

St. John’s Mercy Heart and Vascular Physicians Receive National Quality Recognition for Cardiovascular and Stroke Care

Nine of St. John’s Mercy Heart and Vascular physicians have been recognized by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) and the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association (AHA/ASA) from the Heart/Stroke Recognition Program for providing quality care to patients with cardiovascular disease or who have had a stroke. 100% of the eligible physicians within St. John’s Mercy Heart and Vascular received NCQA recognition.

The Heart/Stroke Recognition Program was designed to improve the quality of care that patients with cardiovascular disease or who have had a stroke receive by recognizing physicians who improve their delivery of cardiovascular and stroke care. To receive recognition, which is valid for three years, physicians submitted data that demonstrates performance that meets the program’s key cardiovascular and stroke care measures. These measures include blood pressure and cholesterol control, among others. When people with cardiovascular disease or who have had a stroke receive quality care as outlined by these measures, they are less likely to suffer additional complications, such as a second heart attack or stroke.

NCQA is a private, non-profit organization dedicated to improving health care quality. NCQA accredits and certifies a wide range of health care organizations and recognizes physicians in key clinical areas. NCQA’s Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS) is the most widely used performance measurement tool in health care. NCQA is committed to providing health care quality information through the Web, media and data licensing agreements in order to help consumers, employers and others make more informed health care choices.

St. John’s Mercy Heart and Vascular is a physician cardiology group practice with offices in north, south and west St. Louis County, and Franklin County.

Physicians recognized include: Seth Barbanell, MD; John Brunts, MD; Louis V. Deane, MD; Robert Ferrara, MD; John Hubert, MD; George Kichura, MD; John Nash, MD; Louis Stickley, MD; and James Stokes, MD.

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