Monument Health Earns 15th Straight Platinum Heart Attack Care Award
Monument Health Rapid City Hospital has received the American College of Cardiology's NCDR Chest Pain ̶ MI Registry Platinum Performance Achievement Award for 2026 making 15 consecutive years receiving the honor. Rapid City Hospital is one of only 350 hospitals nationwide to receive the honor, with fewer maintaining Platinum-level performance for 15 consecutive years.
This award recognizes Monument Health's unwavering commitment to delivering the highest level of care for patients experiencing heart attacks. It reflects the dedication of the Cardiology team at Rapid City Hospital to meet–and exceed–rigorous national standards for treatment. By consistently providing care that aligns with the clinical guidelines of the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association, Rapid City Hospital is helping ensure that our patients receive timely life-saving care they deserve when every second matters.
To receive the Chest Pain ̶ MI Registry Platinum Performance Achievement Award, Monument Health Rapid City Hospital has demonstrated sustained achievement in the Chest Pain ̶ MI Registry for two consecutive years (2024 and 20254) 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.
"We are proud to present Monument Health Rapid City Hospital with the Gold Performance Achievement Award in recognition of its national leadership and steadfast commitment to meeting comprehensive performance measures in patient care," Leslie L. Davis, PhD, ANP-BC, FACC, chair of the NCDR Chest Pain – MI Registry Steering Subcommittee. "Monument Health's achievement reflects its ongoing focus on providing high-quality, guideline-driven care for patients who experience a heart attack and helping ensure they receive exceptional cardiovascular care."
The Centers for Disease Control estimates that over 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 ultimately belongs to the exceptional team at Monument Health caring for our patients every day," said Joseph Tuma, MD, FACC, FSCAI, Executive Medical Director of Monument Health Heart and Vascular Institute. "For 15 consecutive years, our physicians, nurses, advanced practice providers, technologists, emergency medical professionals and quality teams have worked together to deliver timely, high-quality care when every second matters. This award reflects their skill, discipline and shared commitment to providing our patients with the highest level of cardiovascular care possible – right here in the Black Hills."
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.