Premier healthcare alliance named one of World's Most Ethical Companies for 2011

The Premier healthcare alliance has been named one of the Ethisphere Institute's 2011 World's Most Ethical Companies for the fourth year in a row. Ethisphere selected Premier from a record number of applicants across the globe.

“Each year, the competition gets more intense for the World's Most Ethical Companies, and this year was no exception, with a record number of organizations vying for this distinguished honor. Ethisphere congratulates Premier on being one of the World's Most Ethical Companies for 2011.”

Premier alliance owner Baptist Health South Florida of Coral Gables, Fla. was also named to the 2011 list. The companies were recognized for implementing best-in-class business practices and initiatives that are instrumental to success, benefit the community and set ethical standards within the industry.

"As companies strive to maintain a competitive advantage, good ethics translate into better business, and better business means better bottom lines," said Alex Brigham, executive director of the Ethisphere Institute. "Premier recognizes the important role that principled practices play in brand reputation, which ultimately is the most valuable asset for a corporation."

This is the fifth year Ethisphere has published the World's Most Ethical rankings, which appear in Ethisphere Magazine's first-quarter 2011 issue. Ethisphere is a think-tank dedicated to the creation, advancement and sharing of best practices in business ethics, corporate social responsibility, anti-corruption and sustainability.

Continued Brigham, "Each year, the competition gets more intense for the World's Most Ethical Companies, and this year was no exception, with a record number of organizations vying for this distinguished honor. Ethisphere congratulates Premier on being one of the World's Most Ethical Companies for 2011."

Ethisphere reviewed thousands of companies and evaluated a record number of applications using its propriety methodology through in-depth research and multi-step analysis, naming 110 companies that surpassed their industry peers to this year's list. The 2011 list features companies in 38 industries including 43 companies headquartered outside the U.S.

A sampling of other winners includes American Express, eBay, Ford Motor Company, Adidas, Starbucks, PepsiCo and Xerox Corporation.

"Premier strives to live up to the most rigorous principles of business ethics and accountability to our hospital members, as well as to demonstrate our overall commitment to corporate responsibility," said Susan DeVore, president and CEO of Premier. "Our dedication to setting the highest possible standards for ourselves allows us to responsibly support alliance members in improving community health. We're thankful for Ethisphere, who recognizes our leadership and commitment to ethical best practices."

The methodology for the World's Most Ethical ranking includes reviewing codes of ethics, litigation and regulatory infraction histories; evaluating the investment in innovation and sustainable business practices; looking at activities designed to improve corporate citizenship; and studying nominations from senior executives, industry peers, suppliers and customers.

Premier follows the most stringent Code of Conduct in the healthcare industry, based on 50 ethical best practices. Premier's dedication to having "gold standard" business practices provides value to hospitals and communities in the form of reliability and heightened transparency.

All Premier policies, practices and ethical requirements are available for public scrutiny. At the end of each year, Premier reports publicly on progress to demonstrate accountability to alliance members and the general public alike.

SOURCE Ethisphere Institute