June 6, 2000

BIRMINGHAM, AL — UAB (University of Alabama at Birmingham) Hospital has been named one of the nation's "top cardiovascular hospitals."

An independent study by HCIA-Sachs Institute Inc., a Baltimore-based company that collects, manages and distributes comparative health care information, names UAB as one of the best-performing hospitals for cardiovascular services.

The study, "100 Top Hospitals: Cardiovascular Benchmarks for Success," found significant differences in performance between the top hospitals and their peers, with variations of as much as 11 to 22 percent in clinical outcomes for services in the areas of heart attack, angioplasty and artery-related treatments and procedures. The study also found large variations in costs, indicating that on average top hospitals operate at nearly $700 less per case.

Based on a computerized review and analysis of 887,172 Medicare cardiology cases, the study used clinical and financial measures such as average length of stay, and took into account complications, severity of illness and mortality rates.

The study focused on cardiovascular services in the areas of acute myocardial infarction (AMI), percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) and coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) procedures.

UAB was ranked among its peers as a teaching hospital with a cardiovascular residency program. UAB shared the top 100 distinction with 25 other teaching hospitals with cardiovascular residency programs, 45 teaching hospitals without cardiovascular residency programs and 31 non-teaching hospitals.