FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For Further Information Contact:
Desiree M. Voinche
Manager, Communications and Outreach
voinched@dfmc.org

Delmarva Foundation Excellence Award for Quality Improvement Presented to Harbor Hospital for Third Consecutive Year
Harbor Hospital Scores Over 90% in National Inpatient Clinical Measures

Columbia, Maryland – July 1, 2008 – Harbor Hospital has received the 2008 Delmarva Foundation Excellence Award for Quality Improvement from the Delmarva Foundation for Medical Care, Inc., the Medicare Quality Improvement Organization (QIO) for Maryland.   Harbor Hospital has received the award for an unprecedented third consecutive year, having won the award a total of four times, (2001, 2006, 2007, 2008.)

“Recipients of the Delmarva Foundation Excellence Award for Quality Improvement reflect a passionate commitment to improving quality of care for their patients," said Nancy Friedley, MD, Medical Director, Delmarva Foundation for Medical Care, Inc.  “Harbor Hospital’s leadership and Quality Improvement Council have demonstrated their commitment to providing patients with high quality health care services by maintaining an outstanding record of performance excellence over the past three years. Delmarva salutes the achievements of Harbor Hospital and looks forward to our continued collaboration to improve the health of Maryland residents.”

The Delmarva Foundation Excellence Award for Quality Improvement recognizes individual hospital performance improvement in the four national inpatient clinical areas – Acute Myocardial Infarction, Heart Failure, Surgical Care Improvement and Pneumonia.  To receive the award, hospitals must meet or exceed the following criteria and requirements:

• Improved individual performance measure rate to 90 percent or above on the 11 required measures.
• Sustained the improvement for at least three consecutive quarters.

“Receiving this award is an outstanding achievement for Harbor Hospital,” said Joseph M. Oddis, president of Harbor Hospital. “Receiving it for the third consecutive year, which is unprecedented, speaks volumes about the consistent and ongoing level of performance that we are meeting and exceeding every day at Harbor Hospital.”

*Media Note: High resolution images of the award presentation are available upon request.

For more information about the award, visit www.mdqio.org or www.harborhospital.org.

###

About Delmarva Foundation for Medical Care, Inc.
Delmarva Foundation for Medical Care, Inc. (DFMC) is the Quality Improvement Organization (QIO) for Maryland.  DFMC is under contract with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), to improve the quality of health care for Maryland’s 730,000 plus Medicare beneficiaries.  Delmarva provides a range of services, including the development of interventional processes, convening healthcare organizations and stakeholders, fostering the spread of clinical or community practices that improve patient safety and healthcare delivery, and lessening the healthcare disparities that exist in our healthcare system. DFMC has offices located in both Columbia, Maryland and Easton, Maryland.  For more information, visit www.mdqio.org.