OSF HealthCare Saint Francis Medical Center has received the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines® - Stroke Gold Plus quality achievement award for its commitment to ensuring people experiencing stroke receive timely, appropriate treatment based on nationally recognized, research-based guidelines, ultimately helping to save lives and reduce disability.
Stroke is the No. 4 cause of death and a leading cause of disability in the U.S, according to the American Heart Association’s 2026 Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics Report. A stroke occurs when a blood vessel supplying the brain is blocked by a clot or ruptures, preventing blood and oxygen from reaching brain tissue. When this happens, brain cells begin to die. Early detection and rapid treatment are critical to improving survival, minimizing disability and supporting faster recovery.
Get With The Guidelines brings the expertise of the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association into hospitals nationwide, helping ensure patient care is aligned with the latest research- and evidence-based guidelines. Get With The Guidelines - Stroke is an in-hospital program designed to improve stroke care through consistent adherence to these guidelines, which can minimize long-term effects of stroke and help prevent death.
“OSF HealthCare Saint Francis Medical Center is committed to improving patient care by adhering to the latest treatment guidelines,” said Mike Wells, president, OSF Saint Francis Medical Center. “Get With The Guidelines helps our teams put proven science into practice every day. Research shows this approach can support better recovery, with the ultimate goal of helping people live longer, healthier lives.”
Each year, participating hospitals qualify for the award 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.
“We are proud to recognize OSF HealthCare Saint Francis Medical Center for its commitment to caring for people experiencing stroke,” said Steven Messe, MD, volunteer chair of the American Heart Association Stroke System of Care Advisory Group. “Participation in Get With The Guidelines is associated with improved patient outcomes, including greater likelihood of being discharged home, fewer readmissions and lower mortality rates - a meaningful benefit for health care systems, families and communities.”
OSF Saint Francis also received the American Heart Association’s Target: StrokeSM Honor Roll award. To qualify for this recognition, hospitals must meet specific criteria that reduce the time between an eligible patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment with thrombolytic therapy.
OSF Saint Francis also received the American Heart Association’s Target: Type 2 Diabetes™ Honor Roll award. Target: Type 2 Diabetes aims to ensure patients with Type 2 diabetes, who might be at higher risk for complications, receive the most up-to-date, evidence-based care when hospitalized due to stroke.
About OSF HealthCare
OSF HealthCare is an integrated health system founded by The Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis and headquartered in Peoria, Illinois. The system includes 18 inpatient facilities encompassing 16 licensed hospitals, two of which operate dual campuses in separate communities. Among these hospitals, 10 are acute care facilities, five are critical access hospitals and one is a continuing care facility. OSF has 2,141 licensed beds throughout Illinois and Michigan and employs more than 27,000 Mission Partners across 170+ locations. These include OSF HealthCare Children’s Hospital of Illinois, the third largest pediatric hospital in the state, and OSF OnCall, its digital health operating entity that offers hospital-at-home care. In addition, OSF operates two colleges of nursing; OSF Home Care Services, an extensive network of home health and hospice services; Pointcore, Inc., which is composed of health care-related businesses; and OSF HealthCare Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the organization. Advances in health care transformation take place through OSF Innovation as well as OSF Ventures, which provides investment capital for promising health care innovation startups. OSF HealthCare has been recognized by Fortune as one of the most innovative companies in the country and by Forbes as one of America’s Best Employers for Healthcare Professionals. Learn more at osfhealthcare.org.
About Get With The Guidelines®
Get With The Guidelines® is the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s hospital-based quality improvement program that provides hospitals with the latest research-based.