VCU news

By Pamela DiSalvo Lepley

RICHMOND, Va. – MCV Hospitals of the Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center has been named one of the Solucient 100 Top Hospitals in the United States for 2002.  Solucient Corporation – which maintains the country's largest healthcare data base – announced the awards today when it released its latest survey: "100 Top Hospitals: National Benchmarks for Success Class of 2002."

MCV Hospitals not only was named one of the top 100 hospitals in the country, but also was recognized as one of only 16 major teaching hospitals in the United States selected for the honor.

In releasing the findings of the survey, Solucient said, "Through the efforts of their management teams, employees, medical staffs and board of trustees, the year's winning hospitals have set new standards for overall hospital performance across the country."

In conducting the survey, Solucient methodology measures clinical quality practice, operations and financial management.  The company evaluates the MEDPAR data set, which contains information on the more than 12 million Medicare annual discharges from the nation's acute care hospitals.  After analyzing 2002 data, Solucient said that if all Medicare patients received the same level of care as those in this year's Top 100 list:

• An additional 84,000 patients could survive each year;

• Nearly 54,000 patient complications would be avoided annually;

• Expenses would decline by an aggregate $10 billion a year.

"Like so many of these national recognition awards, this one is a reflection of the VCU Medical Center�s outstanding physicians, nurses, allied health professionals, support staff, health sciences faculty and students," said VCU president and VCU Health System president and chair, Dr. Eugene P. Trani.  "I firmly believe this recognition as a Top 100 Hospital is a significant step toward our vision as the preeminent academic medical center in the region."

Solucient said that the 100 Top Hospitals are leaders in new technologies and are far more likely than their peers to be early adopters of selected new diagnostic and therapeutic technologies. 

"This is a great achievement by our medical center," said Dr. Sheldon Retchin, CEO of the VCU Health System and VCU vice president for health sciences.  "We have all known for years the top quality and efficient care we provide to our patients.  Now it is officially recognized by one of the most respected studies of its kind."

Solucient has conducted the Benchmarks for Success study for 10 years.  More information on the study is available at http://www.100tophospitals.com.