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MedCath Announces Agreement With Duke Health Raleigh Hospital

Posted on: Friday, 7 October 2005, 09:00 CDT

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Oct. 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- MedCath Corporation announced an agreement with Duke Health Raleigh Hospital (DHRH) in which MedCath will provide the services of a cardiac catheterization laboratory in addition to DHRH's existing lab. The agreement calls for MedCath to provide the services of the cardiac catheterization lab inside Duke Health Raleigh Hospital for a minimum of seven years.

The catheterization lab will be a part of the Duke Health Raleigh Cardiovascular Center, recently opened in May 2004. The new lab will include state-of-the-art technology and allow DHRH to expand cardiovascular services. It is anticipated that this project could be completed as early as January.

Duke Health Raleigh Hospital is a 186-bed acute-care facility located one block north of the beltline on Wake Forest Road in North Raleigh. Duke Health Raleigh Hospital is part of the Duke University Health System. An acute care hospital, DHRH's range of services includes a 24-hour Emergency Department, Intensive and Critical Care, Cancer Center, Cardiovascular Center, Musculoskeletal Center, Diabetes Center and community education.

Duke and MedCath have further agreed that they will collaborate to identify additional opportunities for the parties to work together on other projects involving the provision of cardiovascular services.

"We are very pleased to be partnering with one of the nation's leading healthcare networks," said Charlie Slaton, MedCath's President and Chief Executive Officer. "We are gratified that the Duke University Health System sees the value in our approach and has the confidence that we will deliver similar results here. This project is another example of MedCath partnering with existing hospitals and health networks to help these facilities grow their cardiovascular service lines."

For the fourth consecutive year, MedCath hospitals on average exhibited lower mortality rates, shorter length of stays, and a higher percentage of patients discharged to their homes instead of another healthcare provider, compared with 1,013 peer community hospitals nationwide that perform open- heart surgery. The study that demonstrated these findings was conducted by The Lewin Group, Inc., a nationally recognized consultant to the health and human services industries. The study also demonstrated that MedCath has on average a higher case mix for cardiac patients, which takes into account complexity and severity.

Over the past year, MedCath has begun partnering with existing healthcare providers to support and grow their cardiac care services, while continuing to operate heart hospitals around the nation. In recent months, MedCath has formed strategic alliances with Novant Health in North Carolina and Benefis Healthcare in Great Falls, Mont., in addition to Duke University Health System.

MedCath Corporation, headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., is a healthcare provider focused on the diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular disease. While each of its majority-owned hospitals is licensed as a general acute care hospital, MedCath focuses on serving the unique needs of patients suffering from cardiovascular disease. Together with its physician partners who own equity interests in them, MedCath currently owns and operates twelve hospitals with a total of 727 licensed beds, located in Arizona, Arkansas, California, Louisiana, New Mexico, Ohio, South Dakota, and Texas. In addition to its hospitals, MedCath provides cardiovascular care services in diagnostic and therapeutic facilities located in various states and through mobile cardiac catheterization laboratories.

MedCath Corporation

CONTACT: Charlie Slaton, President & Chief Executive Officer, or TomHearn, Chief Development Officer, of MedCath Corporation, +1-704-708-6600

Source: PRNewswire-FirstCall

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