Tenet Announces the Opening of Centennial Medical Center

Frisco, Texas – June 1, 2004 – Tenet Healthcare Corporation (NYSE: THC) announced today the planned opening on June 8 of Centennial Medical Center in Frisco, Texas.  Located on a 40-acre campus, Centennial Medical Center will initially be licensed for 118 beds, but will have future capacity of up to 190 beds.  The campus also will include two 72,000-square-foot medical office buildings and an ambulatory surgery center.  The hospital represents a total initial investment of approximately $125 million, including construction and other costs.    

“Centennial Medical Center represents a significant investment by Tenet in the future health and well-being of Frisco and the surrounding communities,” said Robert L. Smith senior vice president of Tenet Texas.  “Centennial Medical Center is an advanced medical facility, designed around patient needs, that has the capacity to expand with the fast-growing communities of Collin County.  Patients who enter Centennial’s doors will receive high quality health care, in a comfortable and courteous environment.”

Centennial will offer a broad range of services including:

·        Advanced technology designed to provide physicians with convenient electronic access to patient information, including test results and diagnostic images, while safeguarding privacy of patients and their family members;

·        Digital imaging for all radiology services, including mammography;

·        Women’s services, including nine labor-and-delivery rooms, a 32-bed nursery, 14-bed neo-natal intensive care unit (including Level III), 40 private beds for post partum and gynecological services, and two caesarean-section suites;

·        An interventional heart program that includes cardiovascular surgery;

·        Surgical suites utilizing minimally invasive technology supported by full clinical information systems;

·        A 21-bed emergency department, and

·        Critical care and medical/surgical services.

“We're pleased to have Centennial Medical Center in our fast growing community and we welcome this advanced hospital to our Frisco family,” said Mayor Mike Simpson.  “Centennial Medical Center will provide our residents with high quality health care, while helping to make our city attractive to families and businesses considering moving to the area.  Centennial Medical Center’s range of services ensures that the citizens of Frisco and surrounding cities will have needed medical care available in a convenient manner.  Additionally, Centennial Medical Center has demonstrated its willingness, as a member of the community, to contribute to the quality of life in Frisco.”

To mark this momentous occasion, Centennial Medical Center will hold an open house for the public and members of the media on Saturday, June 5, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.  This event will provide individuals with an up close look at the facility prior to its opening.  Guided tours of the hospital will be conducted, along with numerous fun activities for families and children.

When it opens, Centennial Medical Center will be Tenet’s fifth acute care hospital in the Dallas area.  The others are 232-bed Doctors Hospital of Dallas; 97-bed Lake Pointe Medical Center in Rowlett; 155-bed RHD Memorial Medical Center in Dallas, and 137-bed Trinity Medical Center in Carrollton.  RHD Memorial Medical Center and Trinity Medical Center are operated under a long-term lease from the Metrocrest Hospital Authority.

Tenet Healthcare Corporation, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates acute care hospitals and related health care services.  Tenet’s hospitals aim to provide the best possible care to every patient who comes through their doors, with a clear focus on quality and service.  Tenet can be found on the World Wide Web at www.tenethealth.com.