Christ, University and Jewish Hospitals Named UnitedHealth Premium Cardiac Specialty Centers

Contact: Patty Thelen (513) 585-7200
Date: 03/15/2005

Cincinnati - Christ, University and Jewish Hospitals have been designated UnitedHealth Premium cardiac specialty centers, reflecting national recognition of the cardiac care they provide. The UnitedHealth Premium cardiac specialty centers program identifies hospitals nationwide that are leaders in providing cardiac care. Select hospitals in the UnitedHealthcare network are invited to apply for designation. "We are honored to receive this designation, which offers further evidence of the high standard of care we are proud to deliver every day," says Jeffery Morneault, vice president of cardiovascular services for the Health Alliance. "We are very pleased to measure favorably against nationally recognized benchmarks for the outstanding cardiac care we provide to our patients." Criteria for selecting UnitedHealth Premium cardiac specialty centers include: · Staff Experience - The facility must have staff who have performed a minimum number of cardiac surgeries and invasive cardiology procedures during the past year. · Breadth of Care - The facility must have proven experience in serving a broad range of cardiac specialties, including diagnostic procedures, cardiac surgeries, interventional procedures and diagnosis and treatment for irregular heart rhythms. · Depth of Care - The facility must have a record of performing a minimum number of cardiac procedures annually, including open-heart surgeries, and pacemaker and defibrillator implantations. · Emergency Care - Emergency care cardiology staff must be in-house or on-call and available within a designated time. The hospital must also track the timeliness of emergency care. · Data Management and Reporting - The hospital must be able to track and report figures for mortality and morbidity for interventional procedures, as well as the number of procedures performed. "Patients who require cardiac care need to know that they are getting quality treatment," says Lewis Sandy, M.D., an internist and executive vice president of clinical strategies at UnitedHealthcare. "Our goal is to enhance the overall quality of care for our customers and enrollees. The UnitedHealth Premium designation signals to all consumers that Christ, University and Jewish Hospitals meet or exceed nationally recognized standards of care." The UnitedHealth Premium program will conduct an annual review of these hospitals' performance against the independently created criteria. The Christ, University and Jewish Hospitals are part of the Health Alliance, an integrated health care delivery system that also includes The St. Luke Hospitals, The Fort Hamilton Hospital and the physicians of Alliance Primary Care. To view other Health Alliance news releases, go to www.health-alliance.com/pressroom.