UP Health System – Marquette Among Nation’s Top Performing Hospitals for Treatment of Heart Attack Patients

American College of Cardiology NCDR Chest Pain – MI Registry Platinum Performance Achievement Award recognizes sustained, high-level performance in quality of care

MARQUETTE, Mich. (June 26, 2025) — UP Health System – Marquette (UPHS – Marquette) has received the American College of Cardiology’s NCDR Chest Pain – MI Registry Platinum Performance Achievement Award for 2025. UP Health System – Marquette is one of only 323 hospitals nationwide to receive the honor.

The award recognizes UPHS – Marquette’s commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of care for heart attack patients and signifies that UPHS – Marquette has reached an aggressive goal of treating these patients to standard levels of care as outlined by the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association clinical guidelines and recommendations.

To receive the Chest Pain – MI Registry Platinum Performance Achievement Award, UPHS – Marquette has demonstrated sustained achievement in the Chest Pain – MI Registry for two consecutive years (2023 and 2024) and performed at the highest level for specific performance measures. Full participation in the registry engages hospitals in a robust quality improvement process using data to drive improvements in adherence to guideline recommendations and overall quality of care provided to heart attack patients.

“It is an honor to award UPHS – Marquette with the Platinum Performance Award for their valuable national leadership and dedication to meeting comprehensive performance measures in patient care,” said Michael C. Kontos, MD, FACC, chair of the NCDR Chest Pain – MI Registry Steering Subcommittee, and cardiologist at Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center. “The receipt of this award indicates that UPHS – Marquette remains committed to providing top-quality, guideline-driven care for heart attack patients. Their success ensures patients are receiving the highest quality cardiovascular care.”

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that more than 800,000 Americans suffer a heart attack each year. A heart attack occurs when a blood clot in a coronary artery partially or completely blocks blood flow to the heart muscle. Treatment guidelines include administering aspirin upon arrival and discharge, timely restoration of blood flow to the blocked artery, smoking cessation counseling and cardiac rehabilitation, among others.

“This recognition reflects the dedication of our entire team to delivering exceptional, evidence-based cardiac care,” said Tonya Darner, market chief executive officer of UP Health System – Marquette. “We’re proud to consistently meet the highest national standards in heart care for our community.”

Chest Pain – MI Registry empowers health care provider teams to consistently treat heart attack patients according to the most current, science-based guidelines and establishes a national standard for understanding and improving the quality, safety and outcomes of care provided for patients with coronary artery disease, specifically high-risk heart attack patients.

“I’m incredibly proud of our organization’s commitment to providing exceptional heart and vascular services right here in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan,” said Joseph Ackerman, RN, STEMI/chest pain coordinator at UP Health System – Marquette. “If you experience a cardiac event and come to our hospital, you can expect evidence-based, world-class care. Our communities and those who visit them continue to benefit from this effort.”

UPHS – Marquette provides cardiovascular services including general cardiology, cardiothoracic surgery, cardiac rehabilitation, clinical research, diagnostic testing, diagnostic and interventional cardiology, electrophysiology, structural heart procedures and vascular care and surgery.

For more information about heart and vascular services at UPHS – Marquette or to take a free heart health assessment, visit UPHealthSystem.com/Heart-Vascular.