Among top 1 percent nationally & one of nine in state to receive accolade

February 24, 2010 (Daytona Beach, FL) --- Out of 5,000 hospitals nationwide, Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center has been named one of America's 50 Best hospitals for 2010 by HealthGrades®, an independent healthcare ratings organization. FHMMC is one of nine hospitals in the state ranked in the top 50 and is among the top one percent of all hospitals nationally for quality outcomes.

Recipients are those that have received the HealthGrades Distinguished Hospital Award for Clinical ExcellenceTM (DHA-CE) for a minimum of six consecutive years from 2003 through 2010. FHMMC has been recognized with this accolade for seven consecutive years.

"Being named a 50 Best hospital is an acknowledgement that demonstrates we are achieving our goals of delivering excellent patient care with the highest quality outcomes," said Mark LaRose, president/CEO, FHMMC. "This recognition is possible because of the skill and dedication of our nurses, physicians and entire team who together care for our patients, and who live our Christian mission daily of creating a haven of hope, health and healing."

Patients admitted to one of America’s 50 Best hospitals are approximately 27 percent less likely to die and eight percent less likely to suffer from a major complication than patients admitted to non-recipient hospitals, according to HealthGrades.

In addition to being named a 50 Best hospital, FHMMC has been recognized by HealthGrades with specialty excellence awards for ranking in the top five percent in stroke care and in the top 10 percent for joint replacement and general surgery for quality outcomes nationally.

The hospital was recognized with five-star ratings (scoring in the top 15 percent nationally) for clinical excellence in joint replacement, total knee replacement, total hip replacement, stroke treatment, treatment of GI bleeds, treatment of bowel obstruction, treatment of sepsis, treatment of pulmonary embolism, treatment of respiratory failure and treatment of appendectomy.

To determine HealthGrades America’s 50 Best Hospitals, the organization analyzed more than 130 million Medicare hospitalization records from every nonfederal hospital in the nation. Hospitals must meet minimum thresholds in terms of patient volumes, quality ratings and the range of services provided. Specifically, hospitals were evaluated based on the risk-adjusted mortality and complication rates across 26 procedures and treatments, from hip replacement to bypass surgery. Hospitals that were in the top five percent of all hospitals for the most consecutive years were named HealthGrades America’s 50 Best Hospitals. The full methodology can be found in the report posted at www.healthgrades.com.

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