DENVER, Dec. 26, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- DaVita Inc. (NYSE: DVA), a leading independent medical group and a leading provider of kidney care services in the United States, today released a recap of the company's most notable 2018 achievements, marking its 18^th year bringing quality of life to patients and teammates around the world.

"Teammates are intentional about creating a special place that helps our patients improve their quality of life," said Kent Thiry, chairman and CEO of DaVita. "And 2018 was no exception."

DaVita's top 2018 milestones and achievements include:

Teammate Support

DaVita Named Member of Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index – DaVita was named a member of the 2018 Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index (GEI), a metric that provides companies across the globe an opportunity to disclose and showcase their efforts in gender equality. Joining a select group of 104 companies, this year's index serves as the first sector-neutral index, comprised of companies earning an index score at or above a globally-established threshold. Of the companies selected for the index:

• Only 40 companies in the U.S. were chosen
• DaVita is one of only two health care companies
• DaVita is the only Colorado-based company

DaVita Ranked on Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index – DaVita received its highest score yet on the 2018 Corporate Equality Index, a national benchmarking survey and report on corporate policies and practices related to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) workplace equality administered by the Human Rights Campaign.

DaVita Supports Teammates with Military Background – Over the past nine years, DaVita has hired more than 3,000 veterans. DaVita is honored to have been recognized with more than 40 awards for Vet recruiting excellence and its commitment to creating a special place for our veteran teammates. The "Village Veterans" programs encourage new veteran teammates to receive mentorship from company leaders as they transition to new roles within the company, and include:

• Veterans 2 Village (V2V), a three-day class designed to honor, energize and connect our Village Veterans. The program, introduced in 2016, focuses on self-development, community service and transition skills. DaVita's internal veterans' programs are designed to foster a stronger community for new veteran teammates while the company's support services continue to develop and grow.
• Thriving after Military Service (TAMS) is a five-day workshop, facilitated by a Marine Corps veteran, and DaVita teammate, which takes an in-depth approach to self-development. TAMS is offered as a way to enhance participants' roles as leaders, family and community members.

Military Awards

• DaVita was named 2018 Outstanding Large Employer of the Year by Disabled American Veterans. Veteran teammates vary from patient care technicians to the organization's current chief development officer.
• Best for Vets – DaVita was recognized by Military Times Edge as a "Best for Vets" employer for the ninth consecutive year.
• Top Veteran-Friendly Companies – DaVita was honored as a top veteran-friendly company by U.S. Veterans magazine for the fifth consecutive year.
• Most Valuable Employer for Military – For the eighth year in a row, CivilianJobs.com named DaVita as a Most Valuable Employer for Military.
• G.I. Jobs Military Friendly – DaVita was named a Military Friendly company by G.I. Jobs for the ninth consecutive year.

Village Awards

Business Excellence

• FORTUNE^® magazine's World's Most Admired Companies – For the 11^th consecutive year, and 12^th year overall, DaVita was named among the World's Most Admired Companies by FORTUNE^® magazine.
• 100 Most Influential People in Health Care – Kent Thiry was ranked among the most influential people in U.S. health care by Modern Healthcare. DaVita believes this list should be called the "most influential companies in health care" because this recognition is both a testament to teammates' hard work and commitment to patients, as well as an indication of the growing acknowledgment of the contributions DaVita makes to the health care industry and to the world at large.
• WorldBlu Certified Freedom-Centered Workplace™ – For the 11^th straight year, DaVita was ranked among the world's most freedom-centered workplaces by WorldBlu.

Caring for Our Patients

• DaVita Clinical Research^® Wins CRO Leadership Awards – DaVita Clinical Research (DCR) was awarded five Life Science Leader's 2018 CRO Leadership Awards.
• DaVita's Inpatient Hospital Services Program Reaccredited by The Joint Commission – The reaccreditation, effective in 2018, is a symbol of quality earned by DaVita Hospital Services for meeting or exceeding performance standards set by The Joint Commission. Reaccreditation focuses on enhancing the quality and safety of patient care through improved clinical outcomes and performance metrics, risk management and survey preparedness.

Caring for Each Other

• 2018 Training Top 125 – For the 14^th consecutive year, Training Magazine named DaVita a leading organization offering exceptional workforce training and leadership development programs.
• LearningElite – DaVita was recognized as a Gold LearningElite organization in 2018 by Chief Learning Officer magazine for creating and implementing exemplary teammate development practices that deliver measurable business value.
• Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles – For the second year in a row, DaVita's many health and wellness programs – including Village Vitality, HealthyWage and Match the Mayor – were recognized as among the best in the nation by the National Business Group on Health.

Corporate Citizenship, Education, Empowerment

Tour DaVita^® Raises $1.1 Million to Support Medical Missions in the World – More than 570 riders participated in the 12^th Tour DaVita, DaVita's annual charity bike ride, which raised more than $1.1 million to support Bridge of Life, a nonprofit organization founded by DaVita that supports medical missions in the U.S. and abroad. To date, Tour DaVita has helped raise more than $11 million for nonprofits dedicated to raising awareness of kidney disease, providing kidney disease screenings and expanding access to kidney care and primary health care in developing countries. More than 1 million miles have been ridden through Tour DaVita since its inception.

DaVita's Vision for Corporate Social Responsibility and Innovation Grows – DaVita released its 2017 Community Care Report, which provides the sum of teammates' impact throughout the year in Caring for Our Patients, Caring for Each Other and Caring for Our World—DaVita's Trilogy of Care. The company believes its approach to Corporate Social Responsibility helps support industry-leading clinical outcomes, award-winning leadership development programs, multiple goodwill initiatives and its commitment to environmental sustainability.

DaVita Operates as Community First – For the second time, DaVita has been recognized by the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI) and is one of only seven U.S.- based companies in the Health Care Providers and Services category on this year's DJSI World Index. The DJSI World Index serves as a benchmark for investors who integrate sustainability considerations into their portfolios and provide an engagement platform for companies who want to adopt sustainable operations. The DJSI is based on an analysis of companies' environmental, social and governance practices.

DaVita Rolls Out New Total Rewards Program – DaVita® Rewards is a customizable program that provides resources for teammates at all stages of their careers and lives through development opportunities, continuing education and benefit enhancements, listed below.

• DaVita Launches Unique Professional Development Programs – DaVita launched Bridge to Your Dreams, THRIVE and Foresters to help create a pipeline of opportunity through internal development programs. Bridge to Your Dreams supports qualified and high-performing patient care technicians in becoming registered nurses through fully funded tuition, scheduling assistance, coaching and role placement. THRIVE is focused on developing high-potential nurses, clinical coordinators and clinic nurse managers for positions in operation management. Foresters helps prepare operational managers for a regional operations director role through mentorship, coaching and hands-on experience with real project work. This portfolio of incremental opportunities is an investment in our talent pool with a goal to enhance our patient care.
• DaVita Encourages Teammate Education – In addition to tuition assistance, DaVita is proud to partner with Guild education to offer college advising services and discounts at over 80 universities and learning providers. This new partnership enhances existing programs, including Bright Horizons Education & College Advising, which helps prepare teammates' high schoolers for college.

Responsible Electronic Waste Management – Since 2016, DaVita has diverted 557,000 pounds of electronic waste from landfills – that's the weight of 43 African elephants. Through recycling and reuse programs, the energy saved is equivalent to powering 3,096 homes for a year or removing 5,330 cars off the road.

DaVita Responds to Natural Disasters in 2018 – DaVita teammates activated emergency response plans across states on both coasts in response to Hurricanes Florence and Michael as well as the California wildfires. During the hurricanes, DaVita quickly deployed more than 50 teammates from across the country to help power its open centers and arranged for 13 generators, nearly 20,000 gallons of fuel, two water tankers and many other supplies to the areas hardest hit. The company continues to support teammates and patients impacted by the California wildfires as efforts turn to long-term recovery.

Teammates Volunteer, Support Environment – On Earth Day 2018, Village Green partnered with Village Service Days to encourage teammates to volunteer in their community in celebration of Earth Day. Approximately 2,700 DaVita teammates, family, and friends contributed 7,611 hours towards 199 environmental projects in their local communities across nine countries. Volunteers collected 2,380 bags of trash, cleaned up almost 8 miles of beaches, and planted more than 2,700 trees and plants. Since 2014, DaVita has contributed 38,548 volunteer hours towards environmentally friendly service projects.

DaVita Donates More than $2.1 Million to Nonprofits Across the Country – For the eighth year in a row, the DaVita Way of Giving campaign has given clinical teammates throughout the U.S. the opportunity to support nonprofits in their communities. Since 2011, teammates have directed donations of nearly $12.5 million through the program.

Responsibly Growing DaVita's Headquarters – In September, DaVita opened the doors to its second building as part of its headquarters campus in Denver. As part of DaVita's 2020 Environmental Goals, we are committed to being at least LEED Silver. Sustainable features of this building include an annual 1.2 million gallons of water savings due to low flow fixtures, daylighting for 90 percent of occupants and LED lighting that has a lifespan of 16 years.

Clinical Leadership and Patient Care

Government Report Shows DaVita Has Top Clinical Outcomes – DaVita continues to be a clinical leader, according to the end stage renal disease (ESRD) Quality Incentive Program (QIP) report issued by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

Delivering High-Quality Care to Patients – DaVita's focus on helping improve patients' health and quality of life is demonstrated in the CMS Five-Star Quality Ratings System, where the company is a leader in quality of patient care for the fifth year in a row.

DaVita Applauds Californians Voting Down of Harmful Ballot Proposition – This November, Californians voted down a measure that would have placed arbitrary and unreasonable restrictions on the payments to dialysis providers. The measure promoted by a labor union, the SEIU-UHW, would have led to reduced access to care for California dialysis patients. Voters understood the negative impacts the ballot proposition would have had on dialysis patients and kidney care community.  

Lifeline Vascular Care® Significantly Improves Patients' Dialysis Outcomes – A study of Medicare data showed that, among other improved outcomes, patients who received care in a Lifeline Vascular Care-managed center had a 9.4 percent lower annual mortality rate than those treated in all other freestanding office-based centers.

Helping Manage Nation's Most High-Risk Patients – DaVita® Health Solutions delivers comprehensive care programs – including house calls, post-acute care, and 24x7 care coordination and support – through at-risk arrangements with health plans to manage their high-risk, poly-chronic members. Over nearly two years, DaVita Health Solution's comprehensive care programs have served approximately 7,000 patients in partnership with more than 600 local primary care physicians, specialists and extended care teams. The program results were extremely positive in its first year:

• 10-15 percent fewer emergency room visits
• 35-40 percent fewer hospitalizations
• 15-20 percent lower cost of care
• 46 percent lower skilled nursing facility (SNF) length of stay
• 64 percent lower SNF-to-acute 30-day readmission rate
• 91 percent patient satisfaction rating

Business Growth and Acquisitions

DaVita Labs Expands Operations – The company celebrated the opening of a 150,000 square-foot campus for DaVita Labs, its diagnostic laboratory that serves DaVita dialysis clinics and their patients. The campus marks an expansion of DaVita Labs' operations in DeLand, Florida, and is expected to create 100 new local jobs.

DaVita Improves Transplant Readiness of Patients – DaVita collaborated with Methodist Specialty and Transplant Hospital and University of Chicago Medicine to launch its Transplant Waitlist Support Program. This technology set new standards in the continuum of care and data accuracy of patients awaiting a kidney transplant and aims to help waitlisted patients stay transplant-ready.

DaVita Partners with EPIC – DaVita announced a partnership with EPIC, the most widely used electronic health record (EHR), which is expected to enhance and grow technological capabilities within DaVita Physician Solutions' chronic kidney disease (CKD) EHR platform.

International

DaVita is dedicated to improving health care for kidney patients in the U.S. and abroad. In 2018, the company achieved several milestones in its work globally:

• In dialysis, DaVita grew patient volumes by 18 percent, now treating approximately 25,000 patients across more than 250 clinics.
• In its two largest markets outside the U.S., Brazil and Germany, the company added 11 and 14 dialysis clinics in 2018, respectively.
• DaVita expanded into multi-specialty care in Brazil, acquiring 10 multi-specialty clinics in Sao Paulo.
• In Colombia, the company launched a tele-dialysis pilot and achieved a peritoneal dialysis penetration rate of 20 percent.

Clinical Innovation and Research

DaVita Pilots Innovative Program for PCTs to Become RNs – DaVita is piloting Bridge to Your Dreams, an innovative program that supports qualified and high-performing patient care technicians in becoming Registered Nurses through fully funded tuition, scheduling assistance, coaching and role placement.

DaVita Clinical Research Continues to Grow Alliance Site Network for CKD Trials – DaVita expanded its research services to further grow the Alliance Site Network, a turnkey solution for pharmaceutical companies seeking high-quality, dedicated research sites that specialize in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and those with comorbid conditions directly related to CKD, but who are not yet on dialysis.

DaVita Clinical Research Featured at American Society of Nephrology Kidney Week – Researchers from DaVita Clinical Research (DCR) and DaVita Kidney Care presented results from several retrospective studies and shared data from innovative clinical improvement programs. The data originated from DCR and its independent research partners in the academic, pharmaceutical and biotech research communities.

About DaVita Kidney Care
DaVita Kidney Care is a division of DaVita Inc., a Fortune 500® company, that through its operating divisions provides a variety of health care services to patient populations throughout the United States and abroad. A leading provider of dialysis services in the United States, DaVita Kidney Care treats patients with chronic kidney failure and end stage renal disease. DaVita Kidney Care strives to improve patients' quality of life by innovating clinical care, and by offering integrated treatment plans, personalized care teams and convenient health-management services. As of September 30, 2018, DaVita Kidney Care operated or provided administrative services at 2,625 outpatient dialysis centers located in the United States serving approximately 201,000 patients. The company also operated 251 outpatient dialysis centers located in 10 countries outside the United States. DaVita Kidney Care supports numerous programs dedicated to creating positive, sustainable change in communities around the world. The company's leadership development initiatives and social responsibility efforts have been recognized by Fortune, Modern Healthcare, Newsweek and WorldBlu. For more information, please visit DaVita.com.

CONTACT: 
Kate Stabrawa
720-318-4080
kate.stabrawa@davita.com

SOURCE DaVita Inc.