Superior Patient Clinical Outcomes Confirms DaVita's Leadership Position on Quality Dia...( Outcomes data confirms that the ri...)

Outcomes data confirms that the risk of mortality faced by patients at

DaVita facilities may be 8% lower than the national average

EL SEGUNDO, Calif., July 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- DaVita Inc., a leading provider of kidney care services for those diagnosed with chronic kidney failure and disease (CKD), significantly exceeds national averages with regard to patient quality, as validated by both the Clinical Performance Measures Report published in 2006 by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), and the December 2007 Fistula First Vascular Access Improvement Initiative. This achievement is notable among the nation's kidney care community because DaVita(R) serves more than 1-in-4 dialysis patients in America.

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"At DaVita, our highest priority is the health and well-being of the more than 100,000 patients cared for by our professional partners and teammates," said Kent Thiry, CEO of DaVita. "We're pleased that this commitment has once again been validated by the findings from CMS."

Research studies show that patients who meet all four of the CMS Clinical Performance Measures (CPM) and the National Kidney Foundation's (NKF) Kidney Disease Outcomes Quality Initiative (KDOQI) achieve the lowest mortality.(a,b) Outcomes data confirms that the risk of mortality faced by patients dialyzed at DaVita facilities may be as much as 8% lower than the national average.

DaVita consistently surpasses national averages for CMS CPM and KDOQI outcomes. Most recently, DaVita outperformed the national averages by as much as 44% on four key clinical performance outcomes. A recent study that compared the mortality trends for the major dialysis providers found that DaVita had a significant improvement in survival compared to non-chain facilities.(c)

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