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Henry Bostic
Premier Inc.
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Hospital savings top $19 million in Premier’s 6th Annual Collaborative Breakthrough Series

Healthcare alliance adds track to help members prepare for Medicare’s new MS-DRG prospective payment system

CHARLOTTE, NC (September 11, 2007) – The hospitals and healthcare systems participating in the Premier healthcare alliances’ Sixth Annual Collaborative Breakthrough Series in just nine months implemented changes resulting in cumulative, validated savings of more than $19 million. These savings serve to free resources to meet critical patient needs in communities they serve.

The $19 million in savings is $6.3 million more than the series’ goal of $12.7 million, marking the sixth consecutive year the Collaborative Breakthrough Series has topped its savings’ goal. The sixth series involved 32 improvement teams from 15 Premier members. Average savings per member team totaled more than $1 million.

More than 230 teams have taken part in the series, capturing cumulative savings of more than $170 million since its inception.

Premier COO Susan DeVore said, “Premier is a hospital performance improvement alliance of not-for-profit hospitals and health systems. A key role we play is to bring members together to share knowledge on ways to improve local healthcare. The Collaborative Breakthrough Series is a prime example of how we do that most effectively.”

Registration is underway for the 2007-2008 Collaborative Breakthrough Series, which launches in October, and it will feature a just-added special track that focuses exclusively on Medicare’s new MS-DRG prospective payment system. This new ruling goes into effect October 1, 2007, and replaces the CMS-DRG system, which has been relatively stable since its inception in 1983.

“The new MS-DRG prospective payment system could affect hospital bottom lines adversely and substantially unless hospitals react quickly and effectively,” said series sponsor Gay Wayland, R.N., Premier vice president of Supply Chain Breakthroughs. “The track is part of our ongoing effort to partners with our members and to meet their needs as expeditiously as possible.”

The aim of the track is to help members prevent avoidable financial loss under the new MS-DRG system by reducing the number of inaccurate claims resulting in lowered reimbursement. Sinaiko Healthcare Consulting, Inc., with whom Premier has a strategic business relationship, will provide faculty for the track.

Other tracks in the Collaborative Breakthrough Series, scheduled for October 2007 to June 2008, include three clinical focus tracks: surgical and cardiovascular services and orthopedics (knee, hip and spine), and one operational track – the MS-DRG payment system.

Three-time participant St. Joseph Regional Health Center of Bryan, Texas, had exemplary results. The initial goal was to save at least $250,000 with a stretch to $500,000. The team shattered those goals in month one, going on to capture more than $839,000 in savings.

Shelly Shultz, Director of Materials Management and St. Joseph’s team leader, said attending Collaborative learning sessions was an important catalyst. “These are not like other meetings where you sit and listen,” she said. “These are real working sessions where you can truly relate to the issues; they resonate with you. It creates a learning environment where you roll up your sleeves and really bring solutions to life.”

The Collaborative uses the Institute for Healthcare Improvement’s (IHI) model for improvement. Participants commit to collaborate with peers from other healthcare organizations to accelerate improvements.

They also commit to implement changes that will significantly improve operations and potentially eliminate millions of dollars of unnecessary expenses. Teams meet in face-to-face learning sessions three times, reinforced by monthly reports and conference calls as well as daily communications through an e-mail discussion list.

For more information, contact Gay Wayland at 858.509.6411 or gay_wayland@premierinc.com or go to the www.premierinc.com.

About Premier Inc., 2006 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award recipient
Serving 1,700 hospitals and more than 47,000 other healthcare sites, Premier is the largest healthcare alliance in the United States dedicated to improving patient outcomes while safely reducing the cost of care. Owned by not-for-profit hospitals, Premier operates one of the nation's largest healthcare purchasing networks, the most comprehensive repository of hospital clinical and financial information and one of the largest policy-holder owned, hospital professional liability risk-retention groups in healthcare. Headquartered in San Diego, Premier has offices in Charlotte, N.C., Philadelphia, and Washington. For more information, visit www.premierinc.com.