By DukeHealth.org staff

Durham, NC -- DukeHealth.org, Duke Medicine’s Web site for patients and families, was awarded the silver medal in the category of "Best Quality & Safety Communication" at the 2009 eHealthcare Leadership Awards.

According to Strategic Health Care Communications, the industry consulting group which presents the honors, the awards "highlight the Internet's role in achieving an organization's business objectives and recognize the hard work that has gone into creating outstanding health Web sites."

"Duke Medicine places the utmost priority on providing safe, high-quality patient care," says Michael Cuffe, MD, Duke University Health System's vice president for medical affairs. "We’re pleased to have achieved this recognition of our commitment to this goal, and to sharing our progress with the patients we serve."

In DukeHealth.org's winning category, judges measured each entry's effectiveness in communicating quality measures, outcomes, and satisfaction data, as well as showing that the organization is following best medical practices, working to improve the quality of care, and enhancing patient safety.

"As a health system, we believe it is our responsibility to educate our patients and the public about the ways we are working to provide the safest and best patient experience," says Karen Frush, MD, chief patient safety officer for Duke University Health System. "DukeHealth.org provides an ideal venue for information that's not only relevant to our patients, but also easily accessible."

The eHealthcare Leadership Awards are given to the Web sites of hospitals, health care systems, medical practices, and other health care-related organizations, and are selected by a judging panel of more than 100 Web experts from across the country. The winners were announced during the 13th Annual Healthcare Internet Conference, held November 2-4 in Las Vegas.