Welcome to the Virginia Heart Attack Coalition (VHAC) website!
The Virginia Heart Attack Coalition (VHAC) is a volunteer collaborative organization dedicated to improving care for heart attack patients in Virginia by implementing the American Heart Association's (AHA) Mission: Lifeline guidelines and fostering cooperation and coordination among the Commonwealth's STEMI care providers. VHAC's membership is comprised of health care professionals involved in all levels of heart attack patient care. VHAC supports participants in sharing ideas, coordinating regional care, collecting outcomes data, and accessing education, funding, and other resources. You can join VHAC by filling out and submitting the form on this page.
Register Your STEMI System
The American Heart Association has just simplified the process for registering your STEMI system. Follow the "E-Z" button to start the process.
Registration now open for the next VHAC Steering Committee Meeting
Thursday, September 16, 2010, 10am-3pm
Location: Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, Davis Center Building
2015 Staples Mill Road, Richmond, Virginia 23230
All members of the committee are asked to REGISTER ONLINE.
There is no charge to attend, however you must be registered in order to have access to the building and receive the agenda prior to the meeting.
The Virginia Heart Attack Coalition-Mission: Lifeline Continues to Gain Momentum
The Virginia Heart Attack Coalition-Mission: Lifeline (VHAC-ML) concluded another successful Task Force Meeting, as evident by the presence and active involvement of over 40 attendees at our gathering in Richmond on March 25, 2010. During this busy and productive event, members and guests heard presentations from each Project Team, Regional Leads, the Virginia Office of Emergency Medical Services (OEMS), and representatives from the American College of Cardiology (ACC) and the American Heart Association's (AHA) ACTION-GWTG ("Get With the Guidelines") Registry. The organizational and political challenges of streamlining STEMI care were openly discussed as Virginia moves forward to meet the Mission: Lifeline’s goals.
See Meeting Notes for information about previous meetings.
2009 Updated Primary PCI & STEMI Recommendations
In November 2009, the ACC and AHA published a short updated list of revisions and additions for the management of patients undergoing either PCI or having STEMI. A brief summary is described on the Research Notes page of this website. The full update can be found on the Journal of the American College of Cardiology website.
Dear Health Care Provider
This year, many Virginians will suffer an acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Despite advances in recognition and treatment, a significant number of patients will become disabled or even die. Research has shown that reducing the time to treatment significantly decreases mortality and improves outcomes.