SADDLEBACK MEMORIAL NAMED ONE OF THE NATION’S 100 TOP HOSPITALS BY THOMSON REUTERS

Saddleback Memorial Medical Center named one of the nation’s 100 Top Hospitals® by Thomson Reuters.

Laguna Hills, Calif. (April 1, 2010) – Saddleback Memorial Medical Center was this week named one of the nation’s 100 Top Hospitals® by Thomson Reuters, an independent health research organization, making them the only hospital in either Los Angeles County or Orange County to receive this recognition.

The award recognizes hospitals that have achieved excellence in clinical outcomes, patient safety, patient satisfaction, financial performance, and operational efficiency. This is the second time in three years Saddleback Memorial has been recognized with this honor.

“The hallmark of exceptional care is to provide the best patient and family experience to those we serve” says Steve Geidt, CEO at Saddleback Memorial. “We are honored to receive this recognition and pleased to share it with the physicians, staff, volunteers and governance who are committed to providing our community with quality, compassionate care.”

The winners were identified through an in-depth analysis, the Thomson Reuters 100 Top Hospitals®: National Benchmarks study. The study evaluated 2,926 short-term, acute care, non-federal hospitals in 10 areas: mortality, medical complications, patient safety, average length of stay, expenses, profitability, patient satisfaction, adherence to clinical standards of care, and post-discharge mortality and readmission rates for acute myocardial infarction, heart failure, and pneumonia.

The winning hospitals were announced in the March 30 edition of Modern Healthcare magazine. “The 100 Top Hospitals winners raised the bar again this year, delivering a higher level of reliable care and greater value for their communities,” said Jean Chenoweth, senior vice president for performance improvement and 100 Top Hospitals programs at Thomson Reuters.

If all Medicare inpatients received the same level of care as Medicare patients treated in the winning hospitals:

• More than 98,000 additional patients would survive each year.

• Nearly 197,000 patient complications would be avoided annually.

• Expenses would decline by $5.5 billion a year.

• The average patient stay would decrease by nearly half a day.”

More information on this study and other 100 Top Hospitals research is available at www.100tophospitals.com.

About Saddleback Memorial Medical Center A 325-bed hospital with locations in Laguna Hills and San Clemente, Saddleback Memorial Medical Center has been working to enhance the health and well-being of South Orange County residents for over 30 years. In addition to 24-hour emergency care, Saddleback Memorial offers complete critical care, an exceptional Women’s Hospital and an array of inpatient and outpatient surgical services. Saddleback Memorial is part of MemorialCare, a system of not-for-profit, community based medical centers. For more information, please visit memorialcare.org/saddleback