“I have a great deal of pride in our medical staff and their dedication to their patients and our hospital,” said Kem Mullins, Saint Francis Hospital-Bartlett chief executive officer.  “Every day we appreciate or physicians.  Doctor’s Day is a time where we can really sit down and say ‘thank you.’”

Saint Francis Hospital-Bartlett hosted a Doctor’s Day lunch for their physicians.  The theme of the event was “The Magic of Medicine.”  Many of the hospital’s nursing units and departments created posters thanking Saint Francis Hospital-Bartlett’s physicians for their service.  The Physician of the Year and Physician Leadership awards were also presented.

Samuel Verzosa, M.D. was named the Physician of the Year.  Dr. Verzosa practices internal medicine at Saint Francis-Bartlett and has been on the medical staff since June, 2004.  In addition, he served on Saint Francis Hospital-Bartlett’s governing board from 2004 until 2009.

“Dr. Verzosa is a valuable part of our medical staff,” said Mullins.  “I often receive comments from our patients and staff about the quality of care provided by Dr. Verzosa.  We are fortunate to have him at Saint Francis Hospital-Bartlett.”

“Being named the Physician of the Year is a great honor,” said Dr. Verzosa.  “It’s a humbling experience to be chosen and I really look forward to being a part of Saint Francis-Bartlett in the future.” 

Get With The Guidelines is a quality improvement initiative that provides hospital staff with tools that follow proven evidence-based guidelines and procedures in caring for heart failure patients to prevent future hospitalizations.  According to Get With The Guidelines–HF treatment guidelines, heart failure patients are started on aggressive risk-reduction therapies such as cholesterol-lowering drugs, beta-blockers, ACE inhibitors, aspirin, diuretics and anticoagulants in the hospital. They also receive alcohol/drug use and thyroid management counseling as well as referrals for cardiac rehabilitation before being discharged.

“The full implementation of national heart failure guideline recommended care is a critical step in preventing recurrent hospitalizations and prolonging the lives of heart failure patients,” said Gregg C Fonarow, M.D., National Chairman of the Get With The Guidelines Steering Committee and director of Ahmanson-UCLA Cardiomyopathy Center.

“The goal of the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines program is to help hospitals like Saint Francis Hospital-Bartlett implement appropriate evidence-based care and protocols that will reduce disability and the number of deaths in these patients.”
According to the American Heart Association, about 5.7 million people suffer from heart failure. Statistics also each year more than 292,200 people will die of heart failure.