Texas Health Frisco earns rare heart attack center certification
If a Frisco resident has a heart attack at 2 a.m., Texas Health Hospital Frisco now has a rare certification that signals 24-hour PCI care for STEMI patients.
For a Frisco family jolted awake by crushing chest pain at 2 a.m., Texas Health Hospital Frisco’s new certification is meant to mean one thing: a nearby emergency room has been recognized for handling the most time-sensitive kind of heart attack with advanced, evidence-based care.
Texas Health Hospital Frisco earned Primary Heart Attack Center certification in June from The Joint Commission and the American Heart Association, placing it among fewer than 30 hospitals in Texas with that distinction. The designation is intended for hospitals that can provide primary percutaneous coronary intervention, or PCI, for STEMI patients around the clock and work within a regional system that also includes referrals from other facilities.
That matters in Collin County, where growth keeps pushing demand for emergency care. Frisco’s population estimate reached 245,470 on Dec. 31, 2025, and 247,457 by April 30, 2026. Texas Health previously said the city had more than 188,000 residents in 2024 and projected 211,000 in 2025. Across the county, the North Central Texas Council of Governments estimated Collin County added almost 76,000 residents in 2025 and more than 64,700 in 2026.
Texas Health Frisco president Tiffany Northern said the hospital focuses on illness prevention, health education and evidence-based care. David Wolf, the hospital’s quality improvement coordinator, said patients and families are often surprised when a loved one has a heart attack, and said the certification shows the hospital is ready to help during a critical time. Texas Health also said the heart is damaged more each minute during a heart attack and that it works closely with EMS, emergency rooms and urgent care providers to improve outcomes.
The certification does not mean every heart attack is treated the same way or that families should wait to see if symptoms pass. It does mean the hospital has been recognized for rapid evaluation, immediate access to advanced cardiac treatment for STEMI cases and coordination with the broader emergency network. If symptoms include chest pressure, shortness of breath, sweating, nausea, lightheadedness or pain spreading to the arm, back, neck or jaw, the safest decision is to call 911 immediately rather than drive to the hospital.
The new recognition builds on Texas Health Frisco’s earlier cardiac milestone. In September 2024, the hospital earned Acute Heart Attack Ready certification after several months of data collection and patient feedback analysis. That earlier review focused on acute coronary syndrome and STEMI, while the new designation raises the bar further.
Texas Health Frisco is Texas Health’s sixth facility to earn the certification, joining hospitals in Bedford, Mansfield, Plano and two in Fort Worth. The hospital began accepting patients on Dec. 16, 2019, and Texas Health has also announced a $25 million expansion that will add 30 new patient rooms, expected to be finished in fall 2026. In a fast-growing part of North Texas, the message for residents is straightforward: more advanced heart attack care is now closer to home, but the first move in an emergency still has to be immediate.
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