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When heart attack victims go to Shady Grove Adventist Hospital in Rockville for treatment, they can now do so knowing that the hospital was recently awarded an accreditation for excellence in caring for patients with chest pain.

Shady Grove became the first hospital in Montgomery County and the fifth in Maryland to earn Cycle II Chest Pain Center accreditation from the international organization, Society of Chest Pain Centers.

"This certification means that Shady Grove demonstrates high performance, streamlined processes and that all patients that come here presenting with the symptoms of a heart attack receive the same standard of care," said Reba Blumenthal, coordinator of the Chest Pain Center at Shady Grove.

In order to receive the accreditation, the hospital had to show expertise in several areas, including integrating the Emergency Department with the local emergency medical system; rapid assessment, diagnosis and treatment of patients; functional design that promotes patient care; personnel competency and training, and support for community outreach programs.

"It was a very rigorous process," Blumenthal said. "There was a site visit and we had to demonstrate the complex processes of all levels of chest pain care."

The optional certification is not pursued by some hospitals because it requires "dedication and allocation of resources," Shady Grove spokeswoman Marisa Lavine said.

Shady Grove also received a five-year extension of its designation as a primary stroke center from the Maryland Institute of Emergency Medical Services Systems, the hospital reported. It originally received the certification last year.