News Release

May 10, 2006

Contact: Jane Shaskan, 860-679-4777
e-mail: shaskan@nso.uchc.edu

UConn Health Center Named Top 100 Performance Leader Nationwide

Award Recognizes Consistent Improved Performance

FARMINGTON, CONN. – The UConn Health Center has been recognized by Solucient as one of a hundred hospitals making the greatest progress in improving performance over a five-year period. The award recognizes senior management teams who have led their organizations to achieve the fastest rate of consistent annual improvement.

The Health Center was one of 15 hospitals in the “major teaching hospitals” category to be recognized for “setting national benchmarks for consistent improvement in clinical outcomes, safety, hospital efficiency, financial stability and growth.” This is the second consecutive year that the Health Center was honored by Solucient, a leading source of healthcare information that conducts the annual study.

“The award is due to the hard work and commitment of our doctors, nurses, support staff, administrators and the support of the Health Center’s Board of Directors, who have allowed us to make critical investments in people and equipment,” said UConn Health Center Hospital Director Steven Strongwater, M.D. “I’m extremely proud of the award because I believe it reconfirms the truly exceptional level of care the Health Center provides.”

Nine performance measures were examined at each hospital: risk-adjusted mortality and complications, average length of stay, expenses, profitability, cash-to-debt ratio, growth in patient volume, tangible assets, and risk-adjusted patient safety index.

"Five years of steady, well-aligned improvement means that these 100 Performance Improvement Leaders have enormously increased the value they provide to their communities," said Jean Chenoweth, senior vice president, performance improvement and 100 top programs, Center for Healthcare Improvement at Solucient.

Acute care hospitals nationwide were analyzed using performance data from 2000 through 2004 that included publicly available Medicare data and reports.

Findings from the third edition of Solucient’s 100 Top Hospitals®: Performance Improvement Leaders Study appeared in the May 1, 2006 issue of Modern Healthcare magazine. The company, based in Evanston, Ill., has been identifying the nation’s top-performing hospitals since 1993 and introduced the Performance Improvement Leaders Award in 2004.

More information on this study is available at www.100tophospitals.com.

The University of Connecticut Health Center includes the schools of medicine and dental medicine, John Dempsey Hospital, the UConn Medical Group and University Dentists. Founded in 1961, the Health Center pursues a mission of providing outstanding health care education in an environment of exemplary patient care, research and public service. To learn more about the UConn Health Center, visit our website at www.uchc.edu.

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