Sanford Westbrook Medical Center receives stroke recognition

Contact:
Jon Berg
Sanford Health Media Relations
605-366-2432 / Jon.Berg@SanfordHealth.org

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — Sanford Westbrook Medical Center has received recognition for its participation in the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline Stroke post-acute care initiative to enhance guideline-based care for stroke patients, ultimately improving and prolonging lives.

The post-acute care initiative provides a framework for assisting facilities to improve care according to the American Heart Association’s rigorous science-based requirements for stroke rehabilitation, including program management, patient and caregiver education and support, care coordination, clinical management and quality improvement.

“Sanford Westbrook and its team of caregivers continue to put in the extra work to ensure our hospital meets and exceeds quality and improvement standards,” said Stacy Barstad, administrator and chief executive officer at Sanford Tracy and Westbrook.  “Our team is committed to improving patient care and ensuring patients in the community can experience longer, healthier lives.”

Mission: Lifeline Stroke is the American Heart Association’s community-based initiative to develop systems of care to improve outcomes for stroke patients. The program launched in Minnesota in September 2024 with the support of a $4 million grant from the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust. The goal of Mission: Lifeline stroke is to bring together hospitals, emergency medical services and first responders, rehabilitation facilities, communications and regulatory agencies, state and local government, and payers to forge a proactive system of stroke care that saves and improves lives.

For more information about Sanford Health, visit SanfordHealth.org.

About Sanford Health
Sanford Health, the largest rural health system in the United States, is dedicated to transforming the health care experience and providing access to world-class health care in America’s heartland. Headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, the organization has 55,000 employees and serves more than 2 million patients and nearly 415,000 health plan members across the upper Midwest including South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota, Wyoming, Iowa, Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The integrated nonprofit health system includes a network of 58 hospitals, 289 clinic locations, 145 senior care communities, 4,500 physicians and advanced practice providers and 1,100 active clinical trials and studies. The organization’s transformational virtual care initiative brings patients closer to care with access to nearly 80 specialties. More than 400 residents and fellows are trained each year through graduate medical education with Sanford Health fully funding and supporting 29 of the 40 available programs. Sanford Health also includes 92 retail pharmacies, including Sanford and Lewis Drug pharmacies with locations in 6 states, and more than 300 pharmacists. Learn more about Sanford Health’s commitment to shaping the future of rural health care across the lifespan at sanfordhealth.org or Sanford Health News.