“The award is basically indicative of the care that you're providing to people,” said Christoper Berry, MD, an interventional cardiologist at the Blum Cardiovascular Institute at Kishwaukee Hospital. “By achieving a certain level of quality in this program, this will, in turn, lead to improved outcomes in our patients.”

The Get With The Guidelines® - Heart Failure quality achievement award is earned by hospitals that demonstrate a commitment to treating patients using the latest guidelines from the AHA. This is done by consistently entering baseline and patient data into an AHA Registry Tool and following the recommended treatment plans.

“Managing this patient population is very labor intensive,” said Dr. Berry.  “It really does take a village.  In addition to making sure they are on the appropriate medical therapy and offered the appropriate medical devices, a lot of attention is given to diet, activity, and symptom management.  Follow-up visits and phone calls are frequent. So, a lot goes into receiving an award like this.”

In addition to Gold Plus status, Northwestern Medicine Kishwaukee Hospital was recognized on the American Heart Association’s Honor Roll for Heart Failure and Type 2 Diabetes treatments.

• 2024 award - Gold Plus, Target: HF Honor Roll, and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll Award
• 2023 award - Gold Plus, Target: HF Honor Roll, and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll Award
• 2022 award - Gold Plus, Target: HF Honor Roll, and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll Award
• 2021 award - Gold Plus, Target: HF Honor Roll, and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll Award

Marsha Royalty, 68, of DeKalb has been a patient at Northwestern Medicine for over two decades. She started seeing Dr. Berry for heart failure in 2016.

“He’s always been very attentive and willing to listen to me as a patient. I’ve had an absolutely wonderful experience with him,” said Royalty. “I have not had one single nurse or doctor that I wasn’t fond of there. I’ve loved them all.”

For more information about The Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at Northwestern Medicine, as well as advanced therapies, visit nm.org.

Language is not only David McClure’s livelihood, but also a point of pride.  When a stroke impacted his ability to communicate, McClure admits he went to a dark place emotionally. A unique aphasia program at Northwestern Medicine Marianjoy Rehabilitation Hospital in Wheaton, Illinois is helping the Versailles, Ohio writer regain his sense of identity.

In January McClure had a stroke while on the job at MidMark Corporation. Fortunately, a coworker quickly called 9-1-1. However, even with the rapid treatment, the temporary lack of blood flow to the part of his brain responsible for speech caused permanent damage. He was diagnosed with Broca’s aphasia, a language disorder in which patients can often understand speech and know what they want to say but have trouble finding and fluently speaking the right words.

“This was tragic for me. My thoughts exist but words fail me. They didn’t use to. I spoke well and often eloquently. It was part of who I was,” said McClure.

McClure attended outpatient speech therapy but felt he only regained about 20% of the language ability he needed to return to work and a full life. His sister, an occupational therapist at Northwestern Medicine Marianjoy Rehabilitation Hospital, encouraged him to enroll in the hospital’s Intensive Comprehensive Aphasia Program (ICAP).

“Research shows that intensive speech therapy can help people with aphasia improve their language abilities. ICAP is designed to maximize on neuroplasticity by providing therapy at a high dosage and frequency to make the most progress possible in a relatively short amount of time,” said Michelle Armour, MS, CCC-SLP, program lead clinician of the Northwestern Medicine Aphasia Center at Marianjoy Rehabilitation Hospital.

Neuroplasticity is the ability of the nervous system to reorganize its structure, functions or connections after injuries, such as a stroke or traumatic brain injury. These reorganized pathways and new connections move functions from a damaged area of the brain to other undamaged areas.

“There are ten principles of neuroplasticity that have been found to drive positive change. A few of those include ‘use it or lose’, repetition and intensity,” said Armour.

Full-time ICAP participants undergo six hours of therapy four days a week for four weeks. A part-time option offers four hours of therapy each day. ICAP sessions include individual therapy, group therapy, social participation, and a dyad (one therapist and two clients).

In one-on-one sessions speech therapist Clare Goodman taught McClure strategies to overcome what he calls “the cobwebs in my brain.” One technique involves picturing the word and associated words in a ring around it.

“Before I was always stuck. It is like a Chinese finger trap. I would get locked. This program taught me to relax, release and think about the periphery of my thoughts,” said McClure. “I can sometimes get back to the word, or at least say something close enough to get my point across.”

McClure especially enjoyed the group sessions where Armour would lead the group in conversations with various topics to reflect meaningful interactions.

“The fire inside is to have conversation,” said McClure. “If you sat in solitude or just watched but didn’t engage, it wouldn’t clear the cobwebs. To converse intentionally and in a guided fashion is essential.”

McClure received homework at the end of each day that was personalized to help him focus on speaking and writing. Now he can write sentences with coherent structure and think while writing.

“What has happened here is breathtaking,” said McClure. “My family came to visit after not seeing me for several weeks and they were aghast at how fluently I was speaking. The fluency is the biggest difference for me. I was very choppy when I arrived. My vocabulary is coming back from the precipice.”

While at Marianjoy, McClure also completed the Driver Rehabilitation Program to ensure he can drive safely following his stroke.  He was able to regain strength, flexibility and balance by working out with personal trainers at Marianjoy’s Health and Fitness Center.

“My husband is a person who relies on his intellect in all his relationships. Although still intact, his struggle with aphasia seemed to make him feel like a lesser version of himself,” said David's wife Michelle McClure. “He leaves the ICAP with tools, resources and renewed confidence. As his wife, I benefited from the meetings that centered on the participants’ care. I feel supported, not only with the knowledge of how to help my husband, but also as a caregiver to help myself.”

McClure hopes to return to his job at Midmark, where he writes technical manuals and user guides for healthcare equipment. He says he isn’t yet back to the level he needs to explain complicated material, but he knows he is on his way.

“I missed feeling like I was able to think things through correctly, precisely, intelligently. It hurt my heart to not be who I was, but I’m getting to show myself again thanks to what they have done here,” said McClure.

Now back at home in Ohio, McClure will continue services through the Northwestern Medicine Aphasia Center at Marianjoy virtually. He hopes to shine a light on aphasia, which he describes as a quiet disorder that not enough people understand. According to the National Aphasia Association, nearly 2 million people in the USA have aphasia. About one third of strokes result in aphasia.

“There are so many people with aphasia who can’t say what they want to say,” said McClure. “The more we talk about aphasia, the better.”

To learn more about the Northwestern Medicine Aphasia Center at Marianjoy, visit nm.org/aphasiarehab.

“It was awesome seeing Jason run the Chicago Marathon,” said Dr. Jahromi. “Three years ago, he was half-paralyzed with a large and dangerous brain aneurysm, and now he just finished the Chicago Marathon with a personal best. It’s an incredible comeback, and as his neurosurgeon, I couldn’t be prouder of Jason.”

“I almost had a shirt made up that said, ‘If found on road, please return to Dr. Jahromi,’” joked DePetris. “I just kept telling myself to keep my legs moving, keep my legs moving. I ran the entire race without having to walk and finished with a personal best of 4:10:37. Chicago and I had unfinished business, and I’m very happy with the outcome.” 

In October 2019, DePetris was 41 years old and preparing for his second marathon of the year – the Chicago Marathon. Jason was healthy with no history of medical conditions. 

On October 12, 2019, the morning before the marathon, DePetris was grabbing breakfast at a Chicago restaurant with his husband and mother, when suddenly his left hand went numb. As the numbness spread up his arm, DePetris’ mouth started to droop, and his speech was slurring.  

DePetris’ family called 911, and luckily, he didn’t have far to go. The restaurant was connected to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in downtown Chicago. 

DePetris was brought into the emergency department, where doctors told him he was having a stroke. Dr. Jahromi was working that morning, and quickly performed a thrombectomy, which is a type of surgery to remove a blood clot from a blood vessel using a catheter. Thrombectomies can reduce the risk of death or permanent disability in stroke patients. 

Not only did the thrombectomy save DePetris’ life, but it led to the discovery of a large brain aneurysm.

“Jason’s blocked artery had a brain aneurysm in the middle, which made it much more complex to open the artery and not bust open the aneurysm at the same time,” said Dr. Jahromi. 

The next day, DePetris couldn’t run the Chicago Marathon. Instead, he was recovering in a hospital room at Northwestern Memorial.

After returning to California, DePetris’ recovery continued. Due to the stroke, he suffered weakness on the left side, causing his left knee to sometimes collapse. DePetris also had a lack of dexterity in his left hand and some minor visual problems. However, he was determined to get back to running – especially the Chicago Marathon. 

During the COVID pandemic, DePetris slowly ramped up his physical training, so when it came time to really train for Chicago, his body would be able to handle a real marathon training plan – and it worked. On Sunday, Oct. 9, DePetris set a personal best at the Chicago Marathon of 4:10:37 with Dr. Jahromi cheering from the sidelines and greeting DePetris at the finish line.

“Dr. Jahromi is more than just a doctor; he truly cares and is invested in his patients,” said DePetris. “Be grateful for everything you have – it can change in a split second. I was in good shape and had never even spent the night in the hospital before my stroke. I’ve learned I can take a lot more punches than I thought I could.”

DePetris signed up as a charity runner for the Chicago Marathon, raising money for the Brain Injury Recovery Foundation, which supports those who have suffered brain or spinal cord injuries. He also wrote a book about his experience, and 100% of proceeds are donated to the Brain Aneurysm Foundation.

WARRENVILLE, Ill. -  Northwestern Medicine and the Warrenville Fire Protection District are collaborating to offer life-saving stroke diagnosis and treatment to residents of the western suburb. Northwestern Medicine’s Mobile Stroke Unit (MSU) can now be directly dispatched for suspected cases of stroke in Warrenville.

The first of its kind in Illinois, Northwestern Medicine’s MSU has a 16-slice CT scanner, telemedicine connections and stroke-specific medications. The team is comprised of a critical care nurse, a CT technician, an EMT technician driver, and a critical care paramedic.

On average, Northwestern Medicine’s MSU provides life-saving treatment 30 minutes faster than traditional transport.

“We are getting a 30-minute head start by bringing the emergency room to the patient,” said Harish Shownkeen, MD, medical director of the Stroke and Neurointerventional Surgery Programs at Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital. “The earlier you treat the patient the better their outcome.  Patients who get treated right away often go home from the hospital instead of to a nursing home or rehabilitation.”

If a patient is suffering stroke-like symptoms, both the MSU and Warrenville Fire Protection Advance Life Support (ALS) ambulance will be dispatched. The patient will undergo an assessment and CT scan to determine if they are suffering a stroke. The testing will also determine what type and appropriate immediate treatment. If it is not a stroke, the Warrenville ALS providers will take command of the patient’s care and transport if necessary.

“When a patient is having a stroke, seconds count. The Warrenville Fire Protection District is pleased to partner with Northwestern Medicine to offer this life-changing and lifesaving initiative to the residents and visitors of our district,” said Andrew Dina, Fire Chief, Warrenville Fire Protection District. “Through this partnership we will improve outcomes and save lives. Introducing the Mobile Stroke Unit program aligns with the fire district’s vision of pursuing excellence in emergency medical services by continually finding ways to make improvements in all that we do.”

Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital’s Mobile Stroke Unit can be directly dispatched by 9-1-1 to patients within the hospital’s Emergency Medical Services (EMS) area, which includes Carol Stream, Bartlett, Glen Ellyn, Glenside, Hanover Park, Roselle, Warrenville, West Chicago, Wheaton and Winfield. For areas in the secondary region that includes St. Charles, Geneva, Batavia, Elburn, Big Rock, Sugar Grove, North Aurora and Fox River/Countryside, fire protection districts and ambulance services can request the MSU for patients who meet stroke criteria.

Stroke is the fifth leading cause of death in Illinois and the leading cause of serious long-term disability according to the Centers for Disease Control.

If you suspect someone is having a stroke, act F.A.S.T.

•       Face: Ask the person to smile. Does one side of the face droop?

•       Arms: Ask the person to raise both arms. Does one arm drift downward?

•       Speech: Ask the person to repeat a simple sentence. Are the words slurred? Can he/she repeat the sentence correctly?

•       Time: if the person shows any of these symptoms, time is IMPORTANT. Call 911 fast.  Brain cells are dying!

Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital has earned the Advanced Comprehensive Stroke Center designation by The Joint Commission. The highest level of stroke certification, this designation recognizes the significant resources in staff, training and state-of-the-art infrastructure that comprehensive stroke centers must have to treat complex cases.

The Warrenville Fire Protection District is located 24 miles due west of Chicago in the west central portion of DuPage County. The fire district covers 18 square miles of residential, commercial and medium high-rise buildings serving a population of 20,000 residents that increases with a daytime labor composition of 40,000 people within the fire district.

To learn more about Northwestern Medicine, visit nm.org.