When to call 911

To prevent damage from a heart attack, it’s important to start at the beginning. According to the American College of Cardiology, 85 percent of heart damage occurs within the rst two hours of a heart attack, when symptoms may be very subtle. “Heart attacks have beginnings. It is important to learn the early signs of heart attack and seek treatment immediately by calling 911,” says Heather Beauford, RN, Washington Regional Chest Pain Center Coordinator.

“Most people recognize severe chest tightness or left-arm pain as heart attack symptoms, but there are also some subtle early signs of an impending heart attack,” says Beauford, who is leading an outreach program at Washington Regional to educate the community about Early Heart Attack Care, or EHAC. Beauford and other Washington Regional staff members are promoting the recognition of early symptoms and signs that a heart attack is about to occur. These include: Nausea

Feeling of fullness

Shortness of breath

Back pain

Chest pressure, squeezing or discomfort Anxiety

Fatigue

Jaw pain

Pain that travels down one or both arms Mild chest pressure, burning, aching or tightness - symptoms that may come and go until nally becoming constant and severe

“For about half of people experiencing these symptoms, the heart attack can actually be prevented with early treatment,” Beauford points out.

The EHAC education program encourages the public to take action, not only for themselves, but also for others. “If you or anyone around you is experiencing early heart attack symptoms, call 911 right away,” Beauford advises. “Driving yourself to the hospital when having these symptoms is not only dangerous for you, but can be dangerous for others and could possibly result in an auto accident, or worse.”

Plus, she explains, emergency medical services providers are equipped with knowledge and technology that can ensure the most timely treatment for a heart attack patient. “By communicating directly with EMS personnel and having important tests performed during transport to the hospital, Washington Regional has been able to signi cantly reduce the amount of time it takes to get treatment started. Time saved is heart muscle saved,” she says.

“As an accredited chest pain center, Washington Regional ensures that patients who arrive at the hospital complaining of chest pain or other symptoms of a heart attack receive the treatment necessary during the critical window of time when the integrity of the heart muscle can be preserved,” Beauford says.

Washington Regional has been an accredited Chest Pain Center with Primary PCI (percutaneous coronary intervention) since 2010, but in 2016 became the rst hospital in Arkansas to receive full accreditation from the ACC as a Chest Pain Center with Primary PCI and Resuscitation. Achieving the Resuscitation designation places the hospital among a select group of only 30 hospitals nationwide. Chest Pain Centers with Primary PCI and Resuscitation have demonstrated that they are prepared with the equipment and staff required to perform emergency angioplasty, a lifesaving intervention performed during a heart attack in which a stent is inserted into an artery to increase blood ow to the heart.

According to the ACC, with these accreditations Washington Regional has demonstrated its expertise and commitment to quality patient care by meeting or exceeding a wide set of stringent criteria and undergoing an onsite review by a team of accreditation review specialists.

Heather Beauford