"Saving time, saves lives" – that's been the motto for the ACC's door-to-balloon (D2B) campaign. Since the launch of the "D2B: An Alliance for Quality" at AHA in 2006, more than 1,000 hospitals in the U.S. and abroad have signed up to reduce their D2B times to the guideline-recommended 90 minutes or less.

During my time at AHA there has been lots of talk about D2B and the next steps – and why shouldn’t there be? The D2B campaign has helped spark change in the practice habits of hospitals around the world and is continuing to push hospitals to make evidence-based improvements in the care they provide. These changes have had a measurable impact on patient outcomes, including the most important patient outcome of all: mortality.

The ACC is keeping up its efforts to encourage participation in this initiative; in fact, there was significant interest from our cardiovascular colleagues in China at last month’s Great Wall International Congress of Cardiology. We’re keeping up the good work! So is the AHA – they have a similar program called "Mission: Lifeline" that tackles reducing door-to-reperfusion times.

As I head back to Washington, D.C., where talk of reforming the health care system has reached a loud crescendo, it’s initiatives like D2B and events like AHA and ACC.09 that we need to promote as tools for reform. All are keys to bridging the gaps between science and practice and providing tools and strategies to improve quality. Congratulations to everyone who helped make AHA happen. I’m looking forward to the same success in just a couple of months at ACC.09!

< Back to Listings