Englewood Health’s emergency medical services has received the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline Gold EMS achievement award for its commitment to delivering rapid and research-based life-saving care for people experiencing the most severe form of heart attack and stroke.
This is the ninth consecutive time that Englewood Health has received this award from the heath association. The hospital’s EMS is also recognized with AHA’s Mission: Lifeline Target Heart Attack Honor Roll award, for its time-critical top-level care for the most severe heart attack cases.
“Our emergency medical services teams can begin treatment for patients when they arrive, typically sooner than if patients drive themselves to the hospital,” says Richard Sposa, MA, NRP, MICP, director of EMS/Emergency Preparedness at Englewood Health. “This is critically important in time-sensitive emergencies, such as suspected heart attacks and stroke.”
According to the “2025 Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics: A Report of U.S. and Global Data” from the American Heart Association, in 2022, cardiovascular disease caused 941,652 deaths in the United States. Every 34 seconds, someone in the U.S. dies from cardiovascular disease. Together, heart disease and stroke account for more deaths than all cancers and accidental causes combined.
The Mission: Lifeline EMS achievement award focuses on on-scene care, bringing to the forefront the collaboration and contributions to patient care of prehospital providers. Englewood Health’s EMS is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Ambulance Services, a recognition of commitment to the highest standards in patient care.
Kacey Kronenfeld, chair of the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline EMS Taskforce, said, “Arguably the most important link in the chains of survival for acute stroke and cardiovascular emergencies is emergency medical services and prehospital professionals. Early condition identification, stabilization, and prehospital interventions, and initiation of actions within the regional systems of care, provide patients with the best chance for receiving expedient definitive therapies leading to optimal outcomes and maximized quality of life.”
