Houston Northwest Medical Center Recognized in the Top 15% of the Nation for Maternity...

Houston Northwest Medical Center Recognized in the Top 15% of the Nation for
Maternity Care Services from HealthGrades

HOUSTON, June 30 /PRNewswire/ -- Houston Northwest Medical Center announced
today that HealthGrades, an independent healthcare ratings company, recognized
them among the top 15% of hospitals for Maternity Care services as a recipient
of a 5-Star Rating for 2009/2010. Houston Northwest Medical Center is one of
only 218 hospitals nation-wide to be named a recipient of this prestigious
distinction. HealthGrades found that wide gaps continue to persist in quality
outcomes for maternity care and the best-performing hospitals had far fewer
complications compared with poor-performing hospitals.

The Sixth Annual HealthGrades Women's Health in American Hospitals study found
that best-performing hospitals had 52% fewer maternal complications among
women who had vaginal births at their facility compared to poor-performing
hospitals. In addition, among women who had either C-sections or
Patient-choice C-sections at these top performing hospitals, they experienced
76% and 84% fewer complications respectively.

"To be ranked among the top 15 percent in the nation for maternity care is a
great honor and is a tribute to our physicians and staff who deliver quality
care to our patients year after year," said Becky Winders, women's services
nursing director at Houston Northwest Medical Center.

Study findings include the following:
-- If all hospitals, among the 19 states studied, performed at the level
of
the best-performing hospitals from 2005 through 2007, 182,129 women
may
have avoided developing one or more in-hospital major obstetrics
complications.
-- Best-performing hospitals had a 56% lower weight-stratified neonatal
mortality compared to poor-performing hospitals.
-- C-section rates average approximately 32% among the 19 states studied.

-- Quality inconsistencies are seen when comparing states; those with the
lowest complication rates have almost half the complications compared
with states that had the highest complication rates.

"For many women, having a baby is their first experience with hospitalization,
and as this study shows, it really matters which hospital is chosen," said Dr.
Rick May, a senior physician consultant with HealthGrades and a study
co-author. "But now women have a way of identifying hospitals with outstanding
track records in terms of the outcomes of other new mothers. That's a powerful
tool for all women as they plan for their birth."

HealthGrades analyzed approximately 13 million hospital delivery and neonate
records from 2005 through 2007 in more than 1,500 hospitals in 19 all-payer
states for this study and identified 218 hospitals as being five-star rated in
maternity care.

The full HealthGrades study can be found at www.healthgrades.com.

For more information about Houston Northwest Medical Center, call 281-580-0000
or visit www.hnmc.com.

About Houston Northwest Medical Center
Houston Northwest Medical Center is located at 710 F.M. 1960 West in Houston.
Houston Northwest Medical Center has been serving the North Houston community
for 35 years. The hospital is an Accredited Chest Pain Center by the Society
of Chest Pain Centers. Houston Northwest Medical Center ranks among the
nation's top hospitals for several service lines including critical care,
stroke and general surgery by HealthGrades, an independent health care ratings
company. Houston Northwest Medical Center is also a designated Bariatric
Surgery Center of Excellence by the American Society for Metabolic and
Bariatric Surgery. To learn more about Houston Northwest Medical Center, a
facility accredited by The Joint Commission, visit www.hnmc.com.

Contact: Theresa Lewis
Houston Northwest Medical Center
(281) 440-2444
Theresa.Lewis@tenethealth.com
or
Scott Shapiro
(720) 963-6584
sshapiro@healthgrades.com

SOURCE Houston Northwest Medical Center

Theresa Lewis of Houston Northwest Medical Center, +1-281-440-2444,
Theresa.Lewis@tenethealth.com; or Scott Shapiro of HealthGrades,
+1-720-963-6584, sshapiro@healthgrades.com