Inova Fairfax Hospital Among America’s 50 Best Hospitals

Hospital Recognized for Outstanding Clinical Performance

Falls Church, VA – (February 24, 2009) — Inova Fairfax Hospital has been named one of America’s 50 Best Hospitals for 2009 by HealthGrades, an independent healthcare ratings company. The honor places the hospital in the top 1 percent of all hospitals in the nation for quality outcomes. For the last two years, Inova Fairfax Hospital has been the only hospital in the Washington/Baltimore region to make the list.

According to HealthGrades, patients admitted to a hospital on their “50 Best” list are roughly 27 percent less likely to die and 8 percent less likely to suffer from a major complication than patients admitted to non-recipient hospitals.

“To be recognized by HealthGrades as one of America’s Top 50 Hospitals truly underscores the hard work and dedication of our staff, nurses and physicians,” says Reuven Pasternak, MD, CEO, Inova Fairfax Hospital. “The ongoing commitment of our frontline caregivers and support staff is what enables us to offer world-class care to the diverse communities we serve. Inova’s vision is to become the best healthcare system in the world, and every day at Inova Fairfax Hospital we strive to make that vision a reality.”

To determine America’s 50 Best Hospitals, HealthGrades analyzed more than 110 million Medicare hospitalization records from every hospital in the nation. Facilities must have demonstrated superior clinical outcomes across 26 different procedures and conditions (rather than just one medical specialty) , and must have maintained this superior level of care year after year. To make this year’s list, the winners maintained quality levels among the top 5 percent in the nation for a minimum of six consecutive years.

“The hospitals who receive this distinction have figured out how to hardwire clinical excellence into the fabric of their organizations,” said Dr. Samantha Collier, HealthGrades’ chief medical officer and lead author of the study.

HealthGrades’ America’s 50 Best Hospital designation is based exclusively on clinical outcomes — risk-adjusted mortality and complication rates for patients at every one of the nation’s nearly 5,000 non-federal hospitals. Hospitals cannot opt-in or out of this independent analysis. A full copy of the study is available at www.healthgrades.com.

Inova Health System is a not-for-profit healthcare system based in Northern Virginia that consists of hospitals and other health services, including emergency- and urgent-care centers, home care, nursing homes, mental health and blood donor services, and wellness classes. Governed by a voluntary board of community members, Inova’s mission is to improve the health of the diverse community it serves through excellence in patient care, education and research. Inova provides a healthy environment for its patients, families, visitors, staff and physicians by prohibiting tobacco use on its campuses.