Baptist Medical Center Beaches in Jacksonville Beach has earned the American Heart Association's highest stroke care quality award, the Get With The Guidelines Stroke Gold Plus designation.

All five Baptist hospitals earn top award

The award, announced by Baptist Health on Tuesday, recognizes hospitals that have met research-based stroke treatment guidelines for at least 24 consecutive months. All five Baptist Health adult hospitals received the Gold Plus, including Baptist Beaches, Baptist Medical Center Jacksonville, Baptist Medical Center South, Baptist Medical Center Nassau and Baptist Medical Center Clay.

Hospitals also honored for diabetes stroke care

All five hospitals also earned the Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll, which recognizes care for stroke patients who also have Type 2 diabetes and may face higher risk of complications.

The American Heart Association recognized more than 3,000 health care organizations nationwide through its Get With The Guidelines programs in 2026. Recognition levels range from Bronze to Gold Plus based on performance and how long a hospital has sustained it.

System beats national average for treatment speed

Baptist Beaches holds a Primary Stroke Center designation from the Joint Commission. Across the Baptist Health system, the median door-to-needle time for administering clot-dissolving medication is 30 minutes, according to a Baptist Health announcement about its May 2026 Joint Commission certification. The national average is 70 minutes.

CEO credits decade of stroke network building

Matt Zuino, president and CEO of Baptist Health, said the system has spent more than a decade building its stroke network. "By connecting hospitals and providers across the continuum of stroke care, we ensure patients receive the right level of specialized care based on their individual needs, regardless of where they enter the system," Zuino said in the announcement.

Ricardo Hanel, a neurosurgeon and co-medical director of the Baptist Stroke & Cerebrovascular Center, said the system's stroke teams provide specialized care around the clock. Baptist Health's Telestroke Program connects physicians at 20 hospitals and satellite emergency rooms across the greater Jacksonville area and South Georgia with stroke specialists 24 hours a day.

Stroke remains a leading cause of death

A stroke occurs every 40 seconds in the United States and is the fourth leading cause of death, claiming an average of 446 lives each day, according to the American Heart Association.

Beaches hospital adds to safety grade streak

The Gold Plus adds to a string of quality recognitions for the Jacksonville Beach hospital. In June, Baptist Beaches earned its 15th consecutive "A" hospital safety grade from The Leapfrog Group, an achievement shared by only 12 other hospitals in the country at the time. Jarret Dreicer, hospital president of Baptist Beaches, said in June that the grade "reflects the discipline, accountability and teamwork our clinicians bring to patient safety every day."