Mercy Hospitals Receive National Recognition for Stroke and Cardiovascular Care

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Mercy Hospitals Receive National Recognition for Stroke and Cardiovascular Care

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Mardi Taylor

[email protected]

Phone: 479-314-6613

Cell: 479-462-7289

by Mercy's Mardi Taylor

Key Points

Mercy hospitals earned more than 75 American Heart Association Get With The Guidelines® achievement awards in 2026 for delivering evidence-based stroke and cardiovascular care based on 2025 performance data.
Twenty-one Mercy hospitals across Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma received recognition, including many rural and critical access locations.
The awards recognize Mercy’s commitment to following the latest research-based treatment guidelines for conditions such as stroke, heart failure and cardiovascular disease, helping improve patient outcomes and recovery.

ST. LOUIS – Mercy hospitals have received more than 75 achievement awards from the American Heart Association Get With The Guidelines^® program for demonstrating a commitment to following up-to-date, research-based guidelines for the treatment of heart disease and stroke.

Mercy has been recognized with Get With The Guidelines awards at 21 hospitals in the communities it serves throughout Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma. Recognition is based on calendar year data for 2025.

Heart disease and stroke are the No. 1 and No. 4 causes of death in the United States, respectively, according to the American Heart Association’s 2026 Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics Report. Studies show patients can experience better outcomes when care teams consistently follow evidence-based treatment guidelines.

Mercy’s awards include gold-level recognitions for stroke care, heart failure, therapy and more, with numerous additional awards at silver and bronze levels. (See Mercy’s full list below.)

The awards recognize Mercy hospitals in Cape Girardeau, Joplin, St. Louis and Springfield and Missouri; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Fort Smith and Rogers, Arkansas; and rural and critical access hospitals across Mercy’s service area.

Get With The Guidelines puts the expertise of the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association to work for hospitals nationwide, helping ensure patient care is aligned with the latest science-backed guidelines. As a participant in the Get With The Guidelines programs, Mercy qualified for the awards by demonstrating a sustained commitment to improving the quality of cardiovascular care.

Each year, participating hospitals qualify for awards by demonstrating how their organization has committed to providing quality stroke care. In addition to following clinical treatment guidelines, Get With The Guidelines participants also provide education to help people manage their recovery and ongoing health at home.

“These awards reflect Mercy’s commitment to caring for people in their community who need cardiovascular care,” said Karen E. Joynt Maddox, M.D., MPH, chair of the American Heart Association Quality Oversight Committee. “By following the American Heart Association’s quality improvement protocols, Mercy can help advance our shared vision of better patient outcomes, fewer readmissions and lower mortality rates — a win for patients, families and healthcare systems.”

Mercy, one of the 15 largest U.S. health systems and named the top large system in the U.S. for excellent patient experience by NRC Health, serves millions annually with nationally recognized care and one of the nation’s largest and highest performing Accountable Care Organizations in quality and cost. Mercy is a highly integrated, multi-state health care system including 55 acute care and specialty (heart, children’s, orthopedic and rehab) hospitals, convenient and urgent care locations, imaging centers and pharmacies. Mercy has over 1,000 physician practice locations and outpatient facilities, more than 5,000 physicians and advanced practitioners and more than 50,000 caregivers serving patients and families across Arkansas, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma. Mercy also has clinics, outpatient services and outreach ministries in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. In fiscal year 2025 alone, Mercy provided more than half a billion dollars of free care and other community benefits, including traditional charity care and unreimbursed Medicaid.

Mercy's 2026 Get With The Guidelines Awards

Arkansas

Mercy Hospital Berryville

Get With The Guidelines®- CAD Award - Rural STEMI Silver, Bronze Referring Plus; Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Rural Silver

Mercy Hospital Booneville

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Rural Gold; Get With The Guidelines®- CAD Award - Bronze Referring

Mercy Hospital Fort Smith

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Gold Plus; Target Stroke Elite Honor Roll; Target Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

Mercy Hospital NWA

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Gold Plus; Target Stroke Honor Roll; Target Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

Mercy Hospital Ozark

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Rural Silver; Get With The Guidelines®- CAD Award - Rural STEMI Bronze, Bronze Referring

Mercy Hospital Paris

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Rural Gold; Get With The Guidelines®- CAD Award - Rural STEMI Bronze; Bronze Referring

Mercy Hospital Waldron

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award – Rural Gold; Get With The Guidelines®- CAD Award – Rural STEMI Bronze; Bronze Referring

Missouri

Mercy Hospital Jefferson

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Gold Plus; Target Stroke Elite Honor Roll; Target Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

Mercy Hospital Joplin

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Gold Plus; Target Stroke Honor Roll; Target Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll; Get With The Guidelines®- CAD Award - Bronze Receiving Plus

Mercy Hospital Lebanon

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Rural Bronze

Mercy Hospital Perry

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Participating; Rural Gold; Gold Plus

Mercy Hospital Pittsburg (Kansas)

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Rural Silver; Silver Plus; Target Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

Mercy Hospital St. Louis

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Gold Plus; Target Stroke Elite Plus Honor Roll; Target Stroke Advanced Therapy Honor Roll; Target Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll; Get With The Guidelines®- Resuscitation Award – Bronze; Get With The Guidelines®- CAD Award – NSTEMI Silver, Gold Receiving Plus, Target Type 2 Diabetes

Mercy Hospital South

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Gold Plus, Target Stroke Elite Plus Honor Roll, Target Stroke Advanced Therapy Honor Roll, Target Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll; Get With The Guidelines®- Heart Failure Award – Gold Plus, Target HF Optimal Honor Roll, Target Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

Mercy Hospital Southeast

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Gold Plus; Target Stroke Honor Roll; Target Type 2 Diabetes; Get With The Guidelines®- CAD Award – Bronze Receiving Plus; NSTEMI Gold; Target Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

Mercy Hospital Springfield

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Gold Plus; Target Stroke Elite Plus Honor Roll; Target Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll; Get With The Guidelines®- Resuscitation Award – Silver; Target CPR; Get With The Guidelines®- CAD Award – Bronze Receiving Plus

Mercy Hospital Washington

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Rural Gold, Gold Plus; Target Stroke Honor Roll; Target Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

Oklahoma

Mercy Hospital Ada

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Rural Gold, Gold Plus; Target Stroke Elite Honor Roll; Target Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

Mercy Hospital Ardmore

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Rural Gold; Gold Plus; Target Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll

Mercy Hospital OKC

Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Award - Gold Plus; Target Stroke Elite Plus Honor Roll; Target Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll