Recognized for outstanding performance by HealthGrades, the leading independent healthcare ratings company

PLACERVILLE, CA (January 31, 2008) – Marshall Medical Center is among the nation’s top five percent of hospitals for overall clinical excellence, according to a study of mortality and complication rates by HealthGrades, the nation’s leading independent healthcare ratings company. Marshall is the only hospital in the Sacramento area to achieve this for two consecutive years.

Marshall has again received HealthGrades’ 2008 Distinguished Hospital Award for Clinical ExcellenceTM based on its clinical quality performance. According to the HealthGrades study, patients admitted to a hospital receiving this award are, on average, 27 percent less likely to face mortality and 5 percent less likely to suffer from a major complication. This year, only 269 of the nation’s 4,971 non-federal hospitals will receive this distinction.

HealthGrades estimates that if all patients were treated at Distinguished Hospitals, 171,424 lives could have been saved and 9,671 post-operative complications could have been avoided during the three years studied.

“Our mission & first value as an organization is that our patients come first,” said James Whipple, Marshall Medical Center CEO. “To receive external and national recognition that we live up to this promise through excellent clinical care, not just once but two years in a row is something we’re excited about.”

The HealthGrades study shows that Distinguished Hospitals for Clinical Excellence, such as Marshall, are improving their patient outcomes at a greater rate in more procedures and diagnoses
than all other hospitals, lowering risk-adjusted mortality rates over the years 2004, 2005, and 2006 by an average of 15%.

“The gap between top-performing hospitals and other persists,” said Samantha Collier, MD, HealthGrades’ chief medical officer. “But Distinguished Hospitals for Clinical Excellence like
Marshall Medical Center have proven that it’s possible to consistently deliver top-notch medical care across a range of procedures.”

Marshall also ranks among the top five percent of all hospitals nationally for overall Pulmonary Care, and among the top ten percent for Critical Care.

Each year, HealthGrades independently analyzes the clinical quality performance of all non-federal hospitals across the country in 27 procedures and diagnoses. In the Distinguished Hospital Study, the company reviewed tens of millions of hospitalization records from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, over the years 2004, 2005 and 2006. Hospitals that receive the HealthGrades Distinguished Hospital Award for Clinical Excellence are those hospitals that rank in the top five percent when all 27 individual scores are aggregated into an overall score.

“At Marshall, we have a dedicated, caring and skilled team of physicians, clinician staff and employees,” said Whipple. “Our community is truly blessed to have them. I want to thank them personally for the hard work they contribute to ensure our patients and their families receive the quality care that is among the best in the nation.”

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Additional Contacts:

James Whipple, Administrator and CEO
Marshall Medical Center
(530) 626-2601
jwhipple@marshallmedical.org

Leah Hall, Director of Performance Excellence Services
Marshall Medical Center
(530) 626-2802
lhall@marshallmedical.org