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Thomasville, NC Thomasville Medical Center has earned the Gold Seal of Approval for stroke care. The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations has awarded Thomasville Medical Centers Primary Stroke Center Certification. Thomasville Medical Center earned this distinction after the Joint Commission conducted an on-site review in November 2006. Presently, Thomasville Medical Center is the only community hospital of its size to achieve such recognition in North Carolina.

"Thomasville Medical Center demonstrated that its stroke care program follows nation standards and guidelines that can significantly improve outcomes for stroke patients," says Charles A. Moll, executive vice president, Business Development , Government, and External Relations, Joint Commission.

Each year about 700,000 people experience a new or recurrent stroke, which is the nations third leading cause of death. On average, someone suffers a stroke every 45 seconds and someone dies of a stroke every 3.1 minutes. Stroke is a leading cause of serious, long term disability in the Unity States with about 4.7 million stroke survivors alive today.

"We're proud to achieve the distinction," says Gabrielle Causby, President of Thomasville Medical Center. "Joint Commission Primary Stroke Center Certification recognizes Thomasville Medical Center's commitment to providing outstanding care to our patients and our community."

The Joint Commission's Primary Stroke Center Certification is based on the recommendations for primary stroke centers published by the brain Attack Coalition and The American Stroke Association's statements/guidelines for stroke care. The Joint Commission launched the program - the nation's first in 2004. A list of Joint Commission certified programs is available at www.jcaho.org.

Founded in 1951, the Joint Commission seeks to continuously improve the safety and quality of care provided to the public through the provision of health care accreditation and related services that support performance improvement in health care organizations. The Joint Commission evaluates and accredits more than 15, 000 health care organizations and programs in the United States, including more than 7,800 hospitals and home care organizations and more than 7,300 other health care organizations that provide long term care, assisted living, behavioral health care, laboratory and ambulatory care services. The Joint Commission also accredits health plans, integrated delivery networks and other managed care entities. In additional, the Joint Commission provides certification of disease-specific care programs and primary stroke centers. An independent, not-for-profit organization, the Joint Commission is the nation's oldest and largest standards setting and accrediting body in health care.