Percent of Heart Attack Patients Given Aspirin at Admission

What the graph is saying

For this measure, higher percentages are better. The graph above shows that HealthEast and St. John's are consistent with top hospitals in the U.S. During the timeframe, Woodwinds saw fewer than 25 patients who fit this measure, so hospital performance could not be predicted.

You can compare all hospitals' performance at the United States Department of Health & Human Services Hospital Compare web site. Its data will be slightly older than the data reflected on the HealthEast web site.

Why is this measure important?

The heart is a muscle that gets oxygen through blood vessels. Sometimes blood clots can block these blood vessels, and the heart can’t get enough oxygen. This can cause a heart attack. Chewing an aspirin as soon as symptoms of a heart attack begin may help reduce the severity of the attack. This chart shows the percent of heart attack patients who were given (or took) aspirin within 24 hours of arrival at the hospital.

Description above from the United States Department of Health & Human Services Hospital Compare web site: www.hospitalcompare.hhs.gov

* The "Top U.S. Hospitals" represent the top 10% of all hospitals reporting information to Hospital Compare.