Methodist Jennie Edmundson Hospital awarded Primary Heart Attack Center certification from Joint Commission

For its consistency to provide top-of-the-line cardiac care, Methodist Jennie Edmundson Hospital became the first hospital in Iowa to be named a Primary Heart Attack Center by Joint Commission. 

Cardiac programs undergo a rigorous evaluation process by Joint Commission to ensure they’re providing evidence-based care that leads to the best possible outcomes. One of the main requirements for this two-year certification is having the ability to provide primary percutaneous interventions 24 hours a day, seven days a week. 

"This certification is a testament to Methodist Jennie Edmundson Hospital's unwavering commitment to the health of our communities across southwest Iowa,” said Methodist cardiologist Dr. Joseph Ayoub. “For the public, this designation offers profound peace of mind: It means they can receive excellent heart care at Methodist Jennie Edmundson. Our multidisciplinary teams have built a rapid, synchronized system of care that maximizes outcomes while providing a great patient experience. Earning this advanced certification doesn’t just reflect our clinical capabilities; it reflects our promise to provide the safest highest-quality cardiac care to the families who trust us with their lives." 

During 2024 and 2025, Jennie Edmundson operated nearly twice as fast as the national benchmark for door to balloon time. With a goal of 90 minutes, Jennie Edmundson averaged 46 minutes for the time when a patient enters the doors of a hospital and the cardiac team is able to diagnose a heart attack, prep them for surgery and successfully intervene.

The hospital also averaged just under six minutes for door to electrocardiogram (ECG) time, which is how fast the team performs an ECG to identify a potential heart attack for any patient who walks into the emergency department. The goal is under 10 minutes.

For first medical contact by emergency medical services (EMS) to balloon time – or the time from when EMS make first contact with a patient until successful intervention and resolution of a blockage – Jennie Edmundson averaged 78 minutes, with the goal being under 90 minutes.

Last year also marked a record year for the hospital’s STEMI (ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction) heart attack volume. In 2025, the team treated 63 patients who received interventions for STEMIs.