PITTSBURGH – The Western Pennsylvania Hospital has been named in a newly released national study as one of the country’s 100 Top Hospitals® for cardiovascular care.

The 2007 Cardiovascular Benchmark for Success Study was commissioned by Thomson Healthcare and examined the performance of nearly 1,000 U.S. hospitals in treating congestive heart failure and heart attacks.

West Penn is one of 30 teaching hospitals with cardiovascular residency programs named to the Top 100 list. Among the elite hospitals joining West Penn on the list are Cleveland Clinic, Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, Yale-New Haven Hospital, Mayo Clinic Hospital in Phoenix, and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston.

“We are proud to be recognized among the best cardiovascular hospitals in the nation,” said Edward M. Klaman, president and chief executive officer of West Penn Hospital.
“We are even more proud of our physicians, nurses, and other professionals and support staff.”

“These winning hospitals bring great value to their communities,” said Jean Chenoweth, senior vice president for performance improvement and 100 Top Hospitals programs in the Center for Healthcare Improvement, Thomson Healthcare. “They have set national benchmarks for clinical process, outcomes, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness.”

To determine the award-winning hospitals, the study analyzed publicly available Medicare cost reports and Medicare Provider Analysis and Review data, examining several areas related to patient outcomes and efficiency.

The study found that if all cardiovascular hospitals achieved the same results as the 100 Top Hospitals award winners, more than 7,000 lives would be saved and nearly 750 medical complications would be avoided annually.

The study examined key performance areas such as risk-adjusted mortality and complications, volume of procedures, severity-adjusted average length of stay, and severity-adjusted average cost.

“We are very happy to see Thomson recognize the quality of cardiac care at West Penn Hospital,” said David B. Lerberg, M.D., Interim Chairman of the Department of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery at West Penn. “Our staff works hard every day to provide exceptional health care to our patients.”

“I am very pleased to hear of our national ranking,” said Venkatraman Srinivasan, M.D., Interim Chief of Cardiology and Director of the Cardiac Catheterization Lab at West Penn. “The protocols and quality-control mechanisms we have put into place are delivering consistent high-quality care for our patients with heart disease.”

West Penn Hospital performed 560 open-heart surgeries and 5,000 cardiac catheterizations in fiscal 2007.

About Thomson Healthcare

The longstanding Solucient 100 Top Hospitals program was renamed this year, when the Thomson Corporation acquired Solucient, LLC, and integrated it into Thomson Healthcare, a leading provider of healthcare information and decision support solutions.

Thomson Healthcare is the leading provider of decision support solutions that help organizations across the healthcare industry improve clinical and business performance. Thomson Healthcare products and services help clinicians, hospitals, employers, health plans, government agencies, and pharmaceutical companies manage the cost and improve the quality of healthcare.

About The Western Pennsylvania Hospital

The Western Pennsylvania Hospital is an academic medical center with two hospital campuses that serve Pittsburgh and the surrounding five-state area: The Western Pennsylvania Hospital in Pittsburgh, comprised of 500 beds, and The Western Pennsylvania Hospital - Forbes Regional Campus in Monroeville with 318 beds.

The Western Pennsylvania Hospital in Pittsburgh was recognized in 2006 as a Magnet hospital by the American Nurses Credentialing Center. West Penn Hospital in Pittsburgh is the first and only hospital in Pittsburgh and western Pennsylvania to receive this prestigious 4-year designation, which recognizes excellence in nursing.

Part of West Penn Allegheny Health System, West Penn Hospital is a leader in patient care, education, and research, and serves as the clinical campus for Temple University School of Medicine.