# Advancements in reperfusion rates and quality of care for ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction: a ten-year evaluation of Salvador's STEMI network

## TL;DR

This study shows that targeted interventions in Salvador's STEMI network significantly improved reperfusion rates and care quality over ten years.

## Contribution

The study demonstrates the effectiveness of problem-driven interventions in improving STEMI care in a low- to middle-income country.

## Key findings

- Reperfusion delivery rate increased from 31% to 73% after interventions.
- Door-to-ECG and ECG-to-STEMI-team trigger times were significantly reduced.

## Abstract

Continuous investment and systematic evaluation of program accomplishments are required to achieve excellence in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) care, especially in resource-limited settings. Therefore, this study evaluates the impact of problem-driven interventions on reperfusion use rate in a long-term operating STEMI network from a low- to middle-income country.

This is a healthcare improvement evaluation study of Salvador's public STEMI network in a quasi-experimental design, comparing data from 2009 to 2010 (pre-intervention) and 2019-2020 (post-intervention). There were evaluated all confirmed STEMI cases assisted in both periods. The interventions, implemented since 2017, included: expanding the support team, defining criteria to be a spoke, and initiating continuous education activities. The primary outcome was the rate of patients undergoing reperfusion, with secondary outcomes being time from door-to-ECG (D2E) and ECG-to-STEMI-team trigger (E2T).

Over ten years, the network's coverage increased by 300,000 individuals, and expanded by 1,800 km2. A total of 885 records were analyzed, 287 in the pre-intervention group (182 men [63·4%]; mean [SD] age 62·1 [12·5] years) and 598 in the post-intervention group (356 men [59·5%]; mean [SD] age 61.9 [11·8] years). It was noticed a substantial increase in reperfusion delivery rate (90 [31%] vs. 431 [73%]; P = 001) and reductions in time from D2E (159 [83–340] vs. 29 [15–63], P = 001), and E2T (31 [21–44] vs. 16 [6–40], P = 001).

The strategies adopted by Salvador's STEMI network were associated with significant improvements in the rate of patients undergoing reperfusion and in D2E and E2T. However, the mortality rate remains high.