News Release

October 23, 2007

Contact: Christopher DeFrancesco, 860-679-3914
e-mail: cdefrancesco@uchc.edu 

John Dempsey Hospital In Exclusive Company

Recognized with Second National Honor This Year

FARMINGTON, CONN. – John Dempsey Hospital at the University of Connecticut Health Center has been honored with a 2007 Premier | CareScience Select Practice National Quality Award for superior patient outcomes in both quality and efficiency.

The award was announced by Premier Inc., the nation’s largest independent health care alliance. It’s the second national honor the UConn Health Center has won for its hospital this year. In March, Solucient, a leading source of health care information, named John Dempsey Hospital a “Top 100 Hospital” for 2006, another mark of prestige in health care.

John Dempsey Hospital is one of 49 hospitals nationally, the top 1 percent of acute inpatient facilities, recognized with the Select Practice Award. Among the more than 4,700 acute care inpatient facilities eligible to receive the award, John Dempsey Hospital exhibited the highest level performance in both quality and efficiency of patient care.

“This is a tremendous honor and a well-deserved tribute to our outstanding staff at John Dempsey Hospital,” says hospital Director James Thornton.

Hospitals do not apply for this recognition. The formula to determine the Premier | CareScience Select Practice National Quality Award winners relies solely on the latest available clinical and quantifiable data: adverse outcomes, length of stay, and patient risk assessment based on 16 clinical factors. A complete description of the methodology is available at www.premierinc.com/about/news/awards/select-practice-methodology.jsp.

Premier Inc. is dedicated to improving patient outcomes while safely reducing the cost of care. Serving 1,700 hospitals and more than 47,500 other healthcare sites, Premier operates one of the nation's largest healthcare purchasing networks, the most comprehensive repository of hospital clinical and financial information, and one of the largest policy-holder owned, hospital professional liability risk-retention groups in healthcare. Headquartered in San Diego, Premier is owned by not-for-profit hospitals and has offices in Charlotte, N.C., Philadelphia, and Washington. For more information, visit www.premierinc.com. 

The University of Connecticut Health Center includes the schools of medicine and dental medicine, the UConn Medical Group, University Dentists, and John Dempsey Hospital, a Solucient Top 100 Hospital® 2006. 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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