MUNDELEIN, IL--(Marketwire - August 18, 2009) - Medline Industries, Inc. announced today that thirteen research projects focused on advancing the knowledge of reducing hospital-acquired conditions will receive over $700,000 in research funding as recipients of its inaugural Prevention Above All Discoveries Grants. The awards were announced during Medline's 2nd Annual Prevention Above All conference in Washington, D.C.

An independent review panel selected seven studies aimed at developing and testing the feasibility of new solutions and six others for empirical study funding to test the costs, effectiveness or dissemination of evidence-based solutions from a competitive group of 58 Letters of Intent. Grant recipients will be paired with a research mentor/consultant to develop methods and guide the conduct of the study, ensuring that a rigorous research process is followed.

"Our goal with these grants is to foster good ideas," said Andrew Kramer, M.D., Head of the Department of Medicine's Health Care Policy and Research Division at the University of Colorado and Grant Review Committee Chair. "These awards will allow the recipients expand their ideas to the next level, as well as giving them a chance to learn about the research process."

These awards are designed to assist healthcare providers in developing and testing creative solutions or interventions for reducing or preventing hospital-acquired harms. Pilot grants are eligible for funding up to $25,000 each and empirical study grants up to $100,000 each.

"There are a lot of PhD's doing research, and they might have some great ideas, but there are also a lot of great ideas from the providers who are on the front lines of healthcare," said Kramer. "The feedback they give us is especially important since innovation is critical to advancing healthcare technology."

The newly awarded grants recipients:

Awarded Pilot Grants
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Title: Surgical Time Out Assurance Program
Institution: Carilion Clinic - Roanoke, VA
Principal Investigator: Deb Copening
Target: Surgical site infection and errors

Title: Descriptive Study of OR Nursing Data Elements (Perioperative
Clinical Processes, and Patient Outcomes)
Institution: AORN (Association of PeriOperative Registered Nurses) -
Denver, CO
Principal Investigator: AkkeNeel Talsma
Target: Errors obtained in the perioperative area (OR processing errors and
surgical patient complications)

Title: Multi-institutional trial to test the validity of newly created HAI
definitions and criteria designed especially for behavioral hospital and
health care settings
Institution: Acadia Hospital - Bangor, ME
Principal Investigator: Thomas Shandera
Target: Healthcare acquired infections

Title: Pressure Ulcer Assessment Among Ethnically Diverse Patients
Institution: Kaiser Permanente - San Jose Medical Ctr
Principal Investigator: Katherine Ricossa
Target: Pressure ulcers

Title: Statewide Maine Infection Prevention Collaborative (MIPC)
Institution: Eastern Maine HealthCare System - Brewer, ME
Principal Investigator: Erik Steele
Target: Healthcare acquired infections

Title: Progressive Mobility Among Critically Ill and Critically Injured
Patients: An Examination of Clinical Outcomes Prior to the Implementation
of Standardized Guidelines
Institution: East Tennessee State University College of Nursing
Principal Investigator: Mona Baharestani
Target: VAP; Pressure ulcers; falls; DVT; PE; catheter-associated urinary
tract infections

Title: Accelerating Pressure Ulcer Prevention Through Regional
Collaboration - Partnership Grant
Institutions: The Hospital and HealthSystem Association of
Pennsylvania/Health Care Improvement Foundation Pennsylvania
Principal Investigators: Lynn Leighton and Kate Flynn
Target: Pressure ulcers

Empirical Grants
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Title: Cost Effectiveness of a Liquid Skin Protectant in the Prevention of
Heel Pressure Ulcers
Institution: New York Methodist Hospital
Principal Investigator: Judy A LaJoie
Target: Heel pressure ulcers

Title: Pressure Ulcer Prevention via Early Detection and Documentation
(both pediatric and adult)
Institution: Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
Principal Investigator: Marty O. Vischer
Target: Pressure ulcers

Title: Perioperative Positioning Injuries Program
Institution: Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School
Principal Investigator: Jesse M. Ehrenfeld
Target: Perioperative positioning related injuries

Title: Family Centered Pressure Ulcer Prevention Program
Institution: Grady Health System
Principal Investigator: Rhonda Scott
Target: Pressure ulcers

Title: Hand Hygiene Intervention Study
Institution: Englewood Hospital and Medical Center
Principal Investigator: Maryelena Vargas
Target: Hospital Acquired Infections

Title: A Comprehensive Pressure Ulcer Prevention Program in a Multi-System
Health Care Network
Institution: St. Luke's Hospital and Health Network
Principal Investigator: Joanne Labiak
Target: Pressure ulcers

About Medline Industries, Inc.

Medline, the nation's largest privately held manufacturer and distributor of healthcare products, manufactures and distributes more than 100,000 products to hospitals, extended-care facilities, surgery centers, home care dealers and agencies and other markets. Headquartered in Mundelein, Ill., Medline has more than 800 dedicated sales representatives nationwide to support its broad product line and cost management services.

Meeting the highest level of national and international quality standards, Medline is FDA QSR compliant and ISO 13485 registered. Medline serves on major industry quality committees to develop guidelines and standards for medical product use, including the FDA Midwest Steering Committee, AAMI Sterilization and Packaging Committee and various ASTM committees. For more information on Medline, visit our Web site, www.medline.com.