SAINTS MEDICAL CENTER HONORED
AMONG NATION’S TOP HOSPITALS
Press Ganey Hospital Value Index™
Recognizes Saints with Best in Value™ Award
LOWELL, Mass., July 8, 2010 – Saints Medical Center announced today that it has been recognized with a 2009-2010 Hospital Value Index™: Best in Value™ Award, as a result of the study conducted by Data Advantage, LLC, the nation’s leader in measuring healthcare value. Saints ranked among the top tier of all hospitals nationwide, achieving high marks in quality, affordability, efficiency and patient satisfaction.
According to Data Advantage, LLC, the Hospital Value Index™ is the first and only performance indicator to focus on the value hospitals provide to their communities and utilizes the latest publicly available data, including Hospital Compare from July 2009, to recognize these accomplishments.
"We are proud to receive this honor at Saints, as it reinforces our commitment to providing quality, affordable care in a compassionate Catholic setting," said Stephen J. Guimond, Interim President and CEO. “Our physicians, nurses, support staff and volunteers strive each day to make our hospital the leader in quality care in the Merrimack Valley. This award stands as a testament to their dedication and achievement of their goals.”
“Value is increasingly important to patients and consumers who decide which hospital they will access for care,” said Dr. David Potash of Press Ganey. “The Hospital Value Index™ is the first award to recognize those hospitals providing exceptional value of care to their communities, and Saints has achieved great results.”
The Hospital Value Index™ pulled data from approximately 4,500 general acute-care hospitals, serving approximately 30.1 million consumers. It defines a hospital’s “value” by its success in four critical areas:
• Quality, including the Center for Medicare & Medicaid’s Core Measures, patient safety and readmission rates;
• Efficiency, including the relative measure of the cost to the hospital for providing services
• Affordability, a relative comparison of prices charged for inpatient and outpatient services; and
• Patient satisfaction as measured by Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers & Systems (HCAHPS).
Second Major Honor
The Data Advantage award is the second national honor that Saints has received in recent weeks. On June 23, Saints announced it has been recognized by the Premier Healthcare Alliance as a winner of the Premier Award for Quality (AFQ). Saints was one of 21 hospital winners and three healthcare systems nationwide to be selected, and only one of two hospitals in Massachusetts to receive the distinction.
About Saints Medical Center
Saints Medical Center is a not-for-profit, full service, acute care community hospital serving Greater Lowell and the Merrimack Valley since 1839. A 163-bed licensed medical center, Saints provides advanced health services to 315,000 residents in 25 towns. With nearly 400 physicians and 1,400 employees, Saints Medical Center is well known for outstanding medical care and patient-centered facilities including its Centers of Excellence in Cancer Care, Orthopedics, Cardiovascular Services and Women’s Health. Saints also offers community-based care at several ambulatory sites and is dedicated to promoting health and wellness in the community. Saints has clinical affiliations with leading Boston academic medical centers and is proud to be one of the top-rated hospitals in Massachusetts according to The Joint Commission.
About Data Advantage
Since 1992, Data Advantage, LLC has specialized in providing the health care and business communities with objective and comprehensive data solutions. The company has aggregated and compiled a warehouse of the most insightful information about healthcare utilization and maintains comprehensive benchmark data about the financial, operational and clinical performance of the U.S. hospital industry. In 2010, Data Advantage was acquired by Press Ganey Associates – a company that partners with more than 40% of U.S. hospitals to measure and improve the quality of their care. For more information visit: www.pressganey.com.
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