TIME:              12 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Location:        San Ramon Regional Medical Center

                       South Conference Room

                       South Building

                       7777 Norris Canyon Road, San Ramon

San Ramon Regional Medical Center will offer free H1N1 vaccines Saturday, January 9, 2010, from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. in the medical center’s South Conference Room in South Building, located at 7777 Norris Canyon Road.

Vaccines will be offered at no charge on a first come, first served basis to the following people: pregnant women, healthcare workers, emergency personnel, children and young people (ages 6 months through age 24 years), and adults (with chronic medical conditions or weakened immune systems.)

Second H1N1 vaccines will not be offered to children who have received one dose of the vaccine.

The vaccine will be injected into the upper arm. The hospital asks people to wear short sleeved shirts.

For questions, call Jelissa Walker, R.N., BSN, director of infection control, at 925.275.6030.

“We are pleased that our hospital has been recognized by CIGNA for the high quality care that we provide,” said Gary Sloan, chief executive officer of San Ramon Regional Medical Center.   “Our physicians and staff work very hard to provide quality patient care, and these designations are evidence of the high standard of care we deliver every day.”

The CIGNA designations are based on the hospital’s effectiveness in treating the selected condition or performing the procedure. The designation measures and weighs complications, mortality and The Leapfrog Group Patient Safety Index.

            The ADA’s Education Recognition Certificate assures that educational program meet the National Standards for Diabetes Self-management Education Programs. These standards were developed and tested under the auspices of the National Diabetes Advisory Board in 1983 and were revised by the diabetes community in 1994 and 2000.

            Programs apply for recognition voluntarily. Program that achieve recognition status have a staff of knowledgeable health professionals who can provide participants with comprehensive information about diabetes management. The process gives professionals a nation standard by which to measure the quality of services they provide, and assures the consumer that he or she will likely receive high-quality service. Education Recognition status is verified by an official certificate from ADA and awarded for three years.

            According the ADA, there are 20.8 million people or 7% of the population in the U.S. who have diabetes. While an estimated 14.6 million have been diagnosed, unfortunately, 6.2 million people are not aware that they have this disease. Each day approximately 4,110 people are diagnosed with diabetes. Many will first learn that they have diabetes when they are treated for one of its life-threatening complications –heart disease and stroke, kidney disease, blindness, and nerve disease and amputation. About 1.5 million new cases of diabetes were diagnosed in people ages 20 or older in 2005. Diabetes contributed to 224,094 deaths in 2002. Since 1987, the death rate due to diabetes has increased by 45%, while the death rates due to heart disease, stroke and cancer have declined.

            The American Diabetes Association is the nation’s leading non-profit health organization supporting diabetes research, advocacy and information for health professionals, patients and the public. Founded in 1940, the Association has an area office in every state and conducts programs in communities nationwide. For more information, visit www.diabetes.org.

            Barbara Reis, Registered Dietician and Certified Diabetes Educator, counsels patients at the Diabetes Management Program at San Ramon Regional Medical Center. For information, call 925.275.6018 or visit www.sanramonmedctr.com.

            San Ramon Regional Medical Center is a full-service acute-care hospital offering a wide range of healthcare service. The hospital is located at 6001 Norris Canyon Road, San Ramon. The main telephone number is 925.275.9200. For referral to physicians who practice at San Ramon Regional Medical Center, call 800.284.2878 or online at www.sanramonmedctr.com.

Tenet Healthcare Corporation, owner of the San Ramon hospital, recently approved the $10.7 million expense for the construction. After three years of planning, San Ramon Regional obtained California State approval and secured the needed funds to proceed with this project.  

According to Gary Sloan, hospital CEO, “Tenet’s decision to fund this important project is reflective of its strong belief that San Ramon Regional Medical Center will grow and flourish in the future.  The new construction project represents our commitment to respond to the needs of our growing community.” 

The construction will increase the size of the emergency department (ED) and the clinical laboratory, expanding the footprint of the original building. The ED will become 8,900 square feet, and the patient capacity will increase from nine beds to 16 beds. The new construction will provide better patient flow and extensive upgrades to public areas. Improved quality of care features include: a negative-pressure isolation room for contagious or contaminated patients, private enclosed patient rooms, an enlarged waiting room, and a dedicated radiographic (X-ray) machine in the ED.  

For improved convenience and work flow, the ED and laboratory will be adjacent with a door linking the two departments. The laboratory expansion will provide larger work-space areas for the chemistry, hematology and blood bank departments.

“I am particularly proud of our achievement in developing an extraordinary hospital that serves our community and physicians with distinction,” said Sloan. “This expansion project is a key element of our growth and development as it represents the strength of our commitment and ability to respond to our many constituencies. We will be better prepared for community disasters, better equipped to respond to community emergency needs, and more responsive to physician and patient care necessities.” 

San Ramon Regional Medical Center opened in 1990 and is a 123-bed acute care hospital. It provides inpatient, outpatient and 24-hour emergency services. The hospital is licensed to receive patients by ambulance through the Contra Costa County and Alameda County Emergency Medical Services.

San Ramon Regional Medical Center is a STEMI Receiving Center for Contra Costa County. A STEMI (ST Elevation Myocardial Infarction) is a high-risk heart attack in which the heart muscles begin to die. A STEMI can be reversed by specialized cardiac procedures that are best given with 90 to 120 minutes of a heart attack’s first sign of chest pain.

Participating in the Train to End Stroke program through the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, the hospital team raised $4,367 for the organization. As part of their fundraising, they sponsored an ice cream social at the hospital. The team appreciates the support of the hospital’s Administrators. The team will continue to train together and participate in future races for the same cause.

The employees are – (from left in the attached photo) Missy Smith, financial case manager; Pam Spooner, R.N., assistant director of the Definitive Observation Unit (DOU); Carolyn Moyer, human resources manager; Theresa Bailey, R.N., assistant director of the Intensive Care Unit;  and Ronica Shelton, R.N., director of critical care services.

DALLAS – August 6, 2009 – Tenet Healthcare Corporation (NYSE: THC) today announced that 29 hospitals have received 73 designations for cardiac care, cardiac surgery and heart rhythm disorders.

Hospitals must meet or exceed UnitedHealthcare’s rigorous quality criteria based on nationally recognized medical standards including programmatic structure, patient care processes and clinical outcomes that are submitted by the hospital to UnitedHealthcare.

“Quality is our top priority at Tenet, and we use evidence-based medicine protocols that are designed to improve patient outcomes,” said Stephen L. Newman, M.D., Tenet’s chief operating officer and interim chief medical officer. “These designations reflect our hospitals’ strong clinical quality focus and commitment to providing high-quality cardiac care for our patients.”

Receiving the designations were:

· Atlanta Medical Center, Atlanta, Ga. — Cardiac Care and Cardiac Surgery

· Brookwood Medical Center, Birmingham, Ala. — Cardiac Care, Cardiac Surgery and Heart Rhythm Disorders

· Creighton University Medical Center, Omaha, Neb. — Cardiac Care, Cardiac Surgery and Heart Rhythm Disorders

· Cypress Fairbanks Medical Center, Houston, Texas — Cardiac Care and Cardiac Surgery

· Delray Medical Center, Delray Beach, Fla. — Cardiac Care, Cardiac Surgery and Heart Rhythm Disorders

· Des Peres Hospital, St. Louis, Mo. — Cardiac Care, Cardiac Surgery and Heart Rhythm Disorders

· Desert Regional Medical Center, Palm Springs, Calif. — Cardiac Care and Cardiac Surgery

· Doctors Hospital at White Rock Lake, Dallas, Texas — Cardiac Care, Cardiac Surgery and Heart Rhythm Disorders

· Doctors Medical Center, Modesto, Calif. — Cardiac Care, Cardiac Surgery and Heart Rhythm Disorders

· Florida Medical Center, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. — Cardiac Care, Cardiac Surgery and Heart Rhythm Disorders

· Fountain Valley Regional Hospital and Medical Center, Fountain Valley, Calif. — Cardiac Care, Cardiac Surgery and Heart Rhythm Disorders

· Frye Regional Medical Center, Hickory, N.C. — Cardiac Care, Cardiac Surgery and Heart Rhythm Disorders

· Hilton Head Hospital, Hilton Head, S.C. — Cardiac Care, Cardiac Surgery and Heart Rhythm Disorders

· Houston Northwest Medical Center, Houston, Texas — Cardiac Care, Cardiac Surgery and Heart Rhythm Disorders

· Lakewood Regional Medical Center, Lakewood, Calif. — Cardiac Care and Cardiac Surgery

· Los Alamitos Medical Center, Los Alamitos, Calif. — Cardiac Care

· Nacogdoches Medical Center, Nacogdoches, Texas — Cardiac Care and Cardiac Surgery

· NorthShore Regional Medical Center, Slidell, La. — Cardiac Care and Cardiac Surgery

· Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center, Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. — Cardiac Care, Cardiac Surgery and Heart Rhythm Disorders

· Palmetto General Hospital, Hialeah, Fla. — Cardiac Care, Cardiac Surgery and Heart Rhythm Disorders

· Piedmont Medical Center, Rock Hill, S.C. — Cardiac Care, Cardiac Surgery and Heart Rhythm Disorders

· Providence Memorial Hospital, El Paso, Texas — Cardiac Care, Cardiac Surgery and Heart Rhythm Disorders

· Saint Francis Hospital, Memphis, Tenn. — Cardiac Care, Cardiac Surgery and Heart Rhythm Disorders

· Saint Louis University Hospital, St. Louis, Mo. — Cardiac Care, Cardiac Surgery and Heart Rhythm Disorders

· San Ramon Regional Medical Center, San Ramon, Calif. — Cardiac Care and Cardiac Surgery

· Sierra Medical Center, El Paso, Texas — Cardiac Care, Cardiac Surgery and Heart Rhythm Disorders

· Sierra Vista Regional Medical Center, San Luis Obispo, Calif. — Cardiac Care and Cardiac Surgery

· Spalding Regional Medical Center, Griffin, Ga. — Cardiac Care

· Twin Cities Community Hospital, Templeton, Calif. — Cardiac Care

Tenet Healthcare Corporation is a health care services company whose subsidiaries and affiliates own and operate acute care hospitals and related ancillary health care businesses, which include ambulatory surgery centers and diagnostic imaging centers. Tenet's hospitals and businesses are committed to providing high quality care to patients in the communities we serve. For more information, please visit www.tenethealth.com.

            In his role as blood conservation manager, Nixon educates the public about ways medical and surgical procedures can be performed to minimize the use of blood products.  Some patients choose this option due to religious reasons, while others may want to reduce the risk of complications that may occur following blood transfusions.  He serves as an advocate for patients who choose blood conservation and works with physicians to facilitate their treatment.

            “Our Tenet Hero winners represent the best of who we are at Tenet and what we do as health care providers in the communities we serve,” said Trevor Fetter, Tenet’s president and chief executive officer.  “The passion and quality of care provided by dedicated professionals like Michael serve as an inspiration to us all.”

            Nixon was one of seven employees inducted into the 2009 Tenet Heroes Hall of Fame.  This year’s recipients were chosen from more than 100 compelling nominations. Tenet Heroes are nominated by their hospital’s leadership team and selected based on their dedication to their patients, co-workers and communities. The Tenet Heroes Hall of Fame recognizes exceptional employees for their dedication and hard work.

            In introducing Nixon at the awards ceremony in Dallas, Gary Sloan, CEO of San Ramon Regional Medical Center, said: “Michael Nixon is more than a colleague and a friend.  He is my hero whom I admire. He brought together nurses, physicians, local police, pharmaceutical company, and transportation authorities to save a patient’s life. What more could we ask for in an employee … and a human being.”

Cardiac Services

- Designated as UnitedHealth Premium® Interventional Cardiac Care Specialty Center, and UnitedHealth Premium® Cardiac Surgery Specialty Center

-Received two American Heart Association Annual Performance Achievement Awards

The hospital received the Get with the Guidelines Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) Annual Performance Achievement Award and the Get with the Guidelines Heart Failure Annual Achievement Award, both from the American Heart Association (AHA).

“Our hospital and staff are committed to delivering care that exceeds nationally recognized standards and ensuring that our patients can be confident they are getting high quality treatment,” said San Ramon Regional Medical Center CEO, Gary Sloan.

The UnitedHealth Premium® designated San Ramon Regional Medical Center as Three Stars and Specialty Centers for both Cardiac Surgery and Interventional Cardiac, based on the current review of the hospital’s quality data provided by the American College of Cardiology and/or Society for Thoracic Surgery.

UnitedHealth’s program is designed to identify hospitals and specialists nationwide that are leading the way in providing quality cardiac care. This program evaluates hospitals capabilities including their quality processes, adherence to evidence-based approaches, compliance with nationally recognized guidelines, and their capabilities to handle cardiac treatment through a continuum of stages. It measures hospital efficiency by looking at the aggregate cost of care at an individual patient level for the complete episode. Hospitals are invited to apply for this designation.

The quality measures in the UnitedHealth Premium® Specialty Center program support UnitedHealthcare’s efforts to empower patients/consumers to make informed healthcare decisions based on evidence-based medicine.

The American Heart Association recognizes San Ramon Regional Medical Center’s commitment and success for 12 consecutive months in implementing a higher standard of cardiac care that effectively improves treatment of patients hospitalized with coronary artery disease and heart failure.

The AHA awards signify that San Ramon Regional Medical Center has reached an aggressive goal of treating heart failure patients and coronary artery patient with 85% or higher compliance to core standard levels of care outlined by the AHA and the American College of Cardiology secondary prevention guidelines for heart failure patients.

Under the Get with the Guidelines Coronary Artery Disease and Heart Failure programs, patients are started on aggressive risk reduction therapies such as cholesterol-lowering drugs, aspirin, ACE inhibitors, and beta-blockers in the hospital, and receive smoking cessation and weight management counseling and referrals for cardiac rehabilitation before they are discharged. Heart failure patients also receive diuretics and anticoagulants in the hospital.

“The American Heart Association applauds San Ramon Regional Medical Center for its success in implementing the appropriate standards of care and protocols to reduce the number of recurrent event in coronary patients,” said Gary Ellrodt, M.D., AHA volunteer chairman for the national Get with the Guidelines. “San Ramon Regional is well above the national average in terms of implementing these life-saving treatments.”

Projections have shown that implementation of cardiovascular disease secondary prevention guidelines nationwide, as promoted by Get with the Guidelines-CAD, could result in saving more than 80,000 lives nationally each year. According to the AHA, more than 450,000 people suffer recurrent heart attacks each year. Statistics also show that within one year of an attack, 25 percent of men and 38 percent of women will die. Within six years after a heart attack, about 22 percent of men and 46 percent of women will be disabled with heart failure.

According to the AHA, about 5 million people suffer from heart failure. Statistics show the incidence of heart failure has not declined in two decades and each year more than 52,000 people die in the U.S. of heart failure.

• The episode on “Heart Health” received a Bronze Award. The guest was Christopher Wulff, M.D., and a cardiologist on staff at San Ramon Regional Medical Center.
• The episode on “Teen Health & Addictions” received a Bronze Award. The guests were Suresh Sachdeva, M.D., and Cynthia Hann, M.D., both pediatricians on staff at San Ramon Regional Medical Center.

Founded in 1980, the Telly Awards showcase and recognize outstanding non-network programming, cable TV commercials, film, and video productions. The hospital's program was among more than 12,000 entries judged this year.

Ask the Doctor has aired for 10 years. The show airs live the first Wednesday of each month from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Contra Costa Television (CCTV), which airs on Comcast Channel 27 in Pleasanton, Livermore, Dublin, and nearly all areas in Contra Costa County. Comcast subscribers in Walnut Creek can watch Ask the Doctor on Channel 19, and Astound Cable subscribers in Walnut Creek and Concord can watch the show on Channel 32.

Approximately 7 to 10 percent of the Telly Award entrants receive Silver Awards, and approximately 18 to 25 percent receive Bronze Awards. Competitors in past competition included clients such as Discovery Health Channel, Walt Disney, and Universal Studios Network.

For the program schedule and list of additional channels airing Ask the Doctor, visit www.sanramonmedctr.com. The live call-in number is 925. 313.1181 or fax to 925.313.1185.

Beenu Chadha sipped tea from Michael Nixon's mother's tea service while they chatted about the happenings at the Cultural Diversity Day Celebration at the San Ramon Regional Medical Center on Monday.  Chadha was dressed in traditional Indian garb to represent her heritage, while Nixon wore a light gray suit and proudly displayed the tea service made in his hometown in the United Kingdom.

"The purpose of this event is to highlight our various heritages," said program coordinator Daisy Rodriguez, a nursing supervisor, who is from the Philippines.  "There is so much cultural diversity in the community and even in our own hospital.  Both staff and patients are becoming increasingly more diverse.

The celebration was part of an educational program for hospital employees.  Its goals were to heighten awareness of traditions, beliefs and attitudes from various cultures around the globe.  The hospital administration hopes this awareness will enhance staff's understanding and sensitivity to different expectations, wants and needs of people from different cultures in a healthcare environment.

Medical center employees showcased their own cultures.  They dressed in traditional costumes, brought in ethnic foods to share and created elaborate cultural presentations and displays.  They also freely and enthusiastically shared information about their cultures and how it relates to healthcare.

"In Iran, we are sympathetic when we approach our patients," said Fatemah Nazerian, a certified nursing assistant.  "We almost have to feel their pain with them.  In Iran, not everyone can be a nurse, so it is a very respected profession."

Satveer Dhaliwal, a nurse representing India, had a similar philosophy.  "In the Indian aspect of medical practice, we bring our caring and compassion.  We treasure our culture at the same time."

Another program for hospital employees involved lectures from staff about their own cultures.  The lectures covered history, cultural identity, traditional values and beliefs, religious practices, concepts of health, medicine and healing.  The lecture series has covered the Philippines, Japan, India, Russia and the Middle East so far.

Many people were surprised to learn that medicine is approached in a similar manner in Iran and Russia.  "Russia shares a border with so many countries and cultures, so there are a lot of similarities," said Olga Bruno, from the Information Systems Department, during her lecture on Russian culture.  "People didn't expect to see the similarities between the East and West."

Bruno said that Russian physicians and others in the medical field learn from German doctors and generally take a Western approach to medicine.  She emphasized that for the last 70 years, Russia has had socialized medicine where the full spectrum of services were free.  "That's the biggest thing," she said.

One problem that can stem from different cultures not understanding each other has to do with communication.  Some patients have a limited knowledge of the English language and may not fully understand the context in which the language is used.  "This may get in the way of our perceptions of patients and their wants and needs," Rodriguez said.

"In order to provide better care for our patients - culturally proper care - we need to be more sensitive to the cultures of other people," Rodriguez said.  "It is a product of our culture and their culture."

Tenet’s annual Circle of Excellence award recognizes the winning hospitals’ accomplishments in a number of different areas and is intended to honor the teamwork, collaboration and cooperation that are required to operate a successful hospital.  Hospitals are evaluated based on such factors as high ratings for patient, employee and physician satisfaction, consistency of the hospital leadership team, proven success at overcoming difficult challenges, and financial performance.

“Through the hard work and dedication of its leadership and staff, San Ramon Regional Medical Center has become a role model for other Tenet hospitals and an essential part of the health care community in the area it serves,” said Reynold Jennings, Tenet’s chief operating officer.  “Under Gary’s leadership, San Ramon Regional Medical Center strives to provide preeminent medical care for its patients, as well as excellent working conditions to attract and retain the best employees.  They are thoroughly deserving of Tenet’s highest award.”

Sloan, Chief Operating Officer Sue Micheletti, Chief Financial Officer Beenu Chadha and Chief Nursing Officer Pam Pshea led the way to San Ramon’s success.   Under their leadership the hospital received a 5-star rating in obstetrics from HealthGrades, a leading hospital research company.  They also worked hard to increase patient, employee and physician satisfaction, further cementing their reputation as the high-quality, high-tech alternative in the booming East Bay market.

Tenet’s regional executives nominate candidates for the Circle of Excellence from the hospitals they supervise. Winners are selected based on both objective criteria, such as patient, physician and employee satisfaction scores, and subjective evaluations.

Christine Dunn is an obstetrical charge nurse whose has it all, outstanding nursing skills, great ability to think on her feet and tremendous compassion for her patients.  This past June, Dunn responded to a crisis in the Family Birthing Unit at San Ramon and the result was the saving of three lives.  Her quick thinking and astute prioritization not only led to a positive outcome, it was also the catalyst for improvements in patient safety and quality of care at San Ramon.

“Tenet is very fortunate to have dedicated, professional and compassionate people like Christine in our hospitals,” said Trevor Fetter, Tenet’s president and chief executive officer.  “The Caregiver Award winner represents the best of who we are and what we stand for at Tenet, which is providing excellent quality care to our patients.  Christine Dunn is thoroughly deserving of this honor.”  

Dunn is just one of four people inducted into this year’s Caregiver Hall of Fame and the only awardee from Tenet’s California Region.  Caregiver award winners are nominated by their hospital’s CEO.  Winners are selected from dozens of nominees, based on both objective criteria, such as extraordinary examples of patient care, devotion to service, technical skills and comments from co-workers, patients and families, and physicians.

San Ramon Regional Medical Center is part of Tenet California.  Since opening in 1990 at 6001 Norris Canyon Road in San Ramon, Calif., the medical center has continued to provide increasingly advanced acute care and outpatient medical services in the area.  San Ramon has been among the pioneers for international medical technology such as the robotic-assisted daVinci™ Surgical System.  Specialized programs include Minimally Invasive Surgery, Bay Area Heart Institute, Spine Program, Women’s Cancer Center, Joint Replacement Program, Breast Cancer Care, Emergency Service, Maternity Services, Pediatric Services and the Outpatient Surgery Center at San Ramon. Pediatricians from Children’s Hospital & Research Center Oakland treat children 24-hour a day at the San Ramon hospital. San Ramon is fully accredited by the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, the nation’s oldest and largest hospital accreditation agency.  To learn more about San Ramon Regional Medical Center visit www.sanramonmedctr.com.

Tenet Healthcare Corporation, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates acute care hospitals and related health care services.  Tenet’s hospitals aim to provide the best possible care to every patient who comes through their doors, with a clear focus on quality and service.  Tenet can be found on the World Wide Web at www.tenethealth.com.

Some of the statements in this release may constitute forward-looking statements.  Such statements are based on our current expectations and could be affected by numerous factors and are subject to various risks and uncertainties discussed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2004, our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and periodic reports on Form 8-K.  Do not rely on any forward-looking statement, as we cannot predict or control many of the factors that ultimately may affect our ability to achieve the results estimated.  We make no promise to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of changes in underlying factors, new information, future events or otherwise.