IN THE NEWS

Bon Secours St. Francis Health System Receives Richard W. Riley Institute Diversity Leadership Award

Greenville, SC, June 6, 2007 - Bon Secours St. Francis Health System has received the 2007 Upstate Diversity Leadership award from the Riley Institute® at Furman University for outstanding corporate achievement in promoting diversity. Recipients are organizations or individuals who are role models for the leadership, commitment and promotion of diversity in the Upstate.

“We are honored to have our commitment to diversity recognized by The Riley Institute,” said Jackie Fernandes, St. Francis Diversity Coordinator. “This award reflects our belief in the Bon Secours philosophy of inclusion and how we value human differences within the organization and in the communities we serve.”

St. Francis Health System obtained this prestigious award based on its ongoing commitment to diversity within the community and its own organization. Among St. Francis’s outstanding diversity initiatives are:

   ● Provision of $54 million in free medical care and services such as:
       - The Health Express mobile clinic, delivering dental services to
          underserved, uninsured, limited-English and non-English residents
       - “Screen for Life,” a program offering free mammograms, ultrasounds
          and biopsies to low-income, medically underserved women

   ● Implementation of a unique Diversity Quality Plan to address shifting
     demographics in the region

   ● Donation of time and efforts for the past three years to develop a
      tour/career exploration workshop for high potential, low-income students
      through the “Bridges to a Brighter Future” program in partnership with
      Furman University

   ● Development, with Cook Ross Consultants, of Culture Vision, an online
      reference tool for employees with information on diverse cultures,
      religions and ethnicities

   ● Designation of diversity awareness and education as a key component
      of new employee orientation as well as ongoing training for all
      employees

   ● Recognition as the “Best Employer for Workers over 50” in 2006 by the
      American Association of Retired Persons—the only employer in South
      Carolina and the first
      healthcare organization in the state to receive this honor

   ● Presentation to St. Francis CEO Valinda Rutledge of the 2006 “Women Making
      History” award by the Greenville Cultural Exchange Center

   ● Recipient of 14 patient satisfaction awards by Professional Research
      Consultants, Inc., in categories with a component that addresses
      diversity issues

The Greenville, Anderson and Spartanburg Area Chambers of Commerce host the annual Upstate Diversity Leadership Awards; USC Upstate is the 2007 sponsor of the Outstanding Business Award.

Liz Keith, Senior Vice President/Mission Services, accepts The Riley Institute® Upstate Diversity Leadership Award for Outstanding Business on behalf of Bon Secours St. Francis Health System. Sponsored by USC Upstate, University Chancellor John Stockwell, PhD, (l) and Executive Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs Reginald Avery, PhD, (r) presented the award.