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ST. JOSEPH'S HEALTH NAMED ONE OF THE NATION'S 50 TOP CARDIOVASCULAR HOSPITALS The excellence of top cardiovascular hospitals points toward opportunities to potentially save thousands of additional lives and billions of dollars in costs. St. Joseph's Health was named as one of the nation's top-performing hospitals by Fortune magazine and IBM ® Watson Health ® . The annual Fortune/IBM 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals study spotlights leading short-term, acute care, nonfederal U.S. hospitals that treat a broad spectrum of cardiology patients. The study is designed to identify impartial, actionable and attainable benchmarks for hospital and clinical leaders as they work to raise their own organizations' standards of performance in cardiac care. "I am extremely proud of our cardiovascular physicians, advance practice providers and nursing staff who contributed to our being named one of the Fortune/IBM Watson Health 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals," says Philip Falcone, MD, MHL, FACS, Chief Medical Officer at St. Joseph's Health. "This is an honor that exemplifies our commitment to quality and excellence in cardiovascular patient care. The entire Central New York community benefits greatly by our high standards and excellent outcomes." St. Joseph's Health ranked first in the nation in percutaneous coronary intervention, second in coronary artery bypass graft, 19th in heart failure and 20th in acute myocardial infarction. "It's especially gratifying to see our No. 1 ranking in percutaneous coronary intervention and our No. 2 rank in coronary artery bypass graft," Dr. Falcone says. "This designation demonstrates that St. Joseph's Health is recognized one of the very best in the nation in heart care." This year's study included 980 U.S. hospitals with cardiovascular service lines. Based on comparisons between the study winners and a peer group of similar hospitals in the study, the winners delivered better outcomes while operating more efficiently and at a lower cost. Extrapolating the results of this year's study, if all Medicare inpatients received the same level of care as those treated in the award-winning facilities: • More than 7,000 additional lives could be saved • More than 5,000 heart patients could be complication free • More than $1.6 billion in inpatient costs could be saved "With more than 120 million American adults living with some form of cardiovascular disease, cardiovascular services are among the most critical in health care," says Ekta Punwani, 100 Top Hospitals Program Lead at IBM Watson Health. "Hospitals are constantly working to improve clinical and operational performance, and the exceptional organizations on this list demonstrate the standard for top performing cardiac care. Their benchmarks serve as a real-world checkpoint for cardiovascular care across the U.S." From performing the first successful open-heart surgery in Syracuse to helping pioneer new protocols for transcatheter aortic valve replacement, St. Joseph's Health has been at the forefront of heart care, both regionally and nationally, for decades. In the past 10 years, St. Joseph's Health has reinforced that position, expanding its team of highly trained cardiac specialists and adding to its menu of advanced interventional procedures, minimally invasive surgeries and mechanical supports to treat even the most complex cases. St. Joseph's Health opened a 45,000-square-foot Cardiovascular Institute in 2018. The program serves a 15-county area that extends from Canada to Pennsylvania, and from the Finger Lakes to Utica. For more information, visit everybeatmatterssjh.org. The annual report highlights the top-performing cardiovascular hospitals in the U.S. based on a balanced scorecard of publicly available clinical, operational, and patient satisfaction metrics and data. The winning hospitals were announced in Fortune. For more information, visit ibm.com/watson-health/services/100-top-hospitals. n MEDICA L BRIEF S 2 2