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Home > News
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| Monday, September 20, 2010
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Contact: Debra Thompson
Director, RMH Corporate Communications
540-564-5886
Family practice physicians at Rockingham Family Physicians and RMH clinics have achieved national recognition for providing evidence-based care to patients with cardiovascular disease and stroke.
Rockingham Family Physicians, RMH South Main Medical Center and RMH East Rockingham Health Center physicians achieved the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) Heart/Stroke Recognition.
Only 99 physicians in Virginia have attained this recognition; of those, 12 percent are located in Harrisonburg, noted John McGowan, MD, chief executive officer, RMH Medical Group.
“Only a handful of Virginia physicians have achieved this level of recognition,” McGowan said. “This is quite a feat. It speaks to the level of commitment our family physicians demonstrate in putting patient care first and going the extra mile for their patients.”
The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) Heart/Stroke Recognition Program, jointly developed by NCQA and the American Heart Association (AHA/ASA), is designed to recognize clinicians who use evidence-based measures and provide excellent care to patients with cardiovascular disease or who have had a stroke.
The Heart/Stroke Recognition Program assesses key quality performance measures that are based on AHA/ASA and American College of Cardiology guidelines for secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease and stroke.
Program measures include blood pressure control, complete lipid profile, cholesterol control, use of aspirin or another anti-thrombotic, and smoking status and cessation advice or treatment.
The recognition provides assurance that clinicians are providing high quality, evidenced–based care for their patients following a diagnosis of cardiovascular disease and stroke, said John Witman, MD, Rockingham Family Physicians. Dr. Witman led the efforts to complete the study.
“The study included data collected retrospectively for a one-year period,” Dr. Witman said. “Actual patient care data was reviewed and found to meet rigid NCQA standards. Our patients can be proud that not only does RMH Healthcare have the Healthgrades No. 1-ranked program for coronary intervention in the state of Virginia, but also that their family physician is trained to provide appropriate follow-up care following a diagnosis.”
Physicians who achieved the recognition include Dr. David Rossi, East Rockingham Health Center; Dr. Robert Keeton, RMH Mount Jackson Clinic; Dr. Dawn Alexander, Dr. Jerome Hotchkiss, Dr. Shawn Lepley, Dr. Wayne McNett, and Dr. Alan Morgan of RMH South Main Clinic; and Dr. James Haley, Dr. Doug Smith, Dr. Kerry Leichty, Dr. Stephen Godshall, and Dr. John Witman, of Rockingham Family Physicians.
The data collection and submission process was achieved in collaboration with the Virginia Academy of Family Physicians (VAFP) and the American Heart Association, and received funding from the Medical Society of Virginia Foundation program TO GOAL: Together Obtaining Guidelines Optimization, Adherence and Lifestyles™, a physician-driven approach to clinical care quality improvement.
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