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Microsoft Corp. & Companions in Courage Foundation Give Xbox 360 Kiosks to Young Patients at Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children at P/SL

Saturday, October 25, 2008 General News
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DENVER, Oct. 24 Pediatric patients at Rocky MountainHospital for Children (RMHC) in Denver today received new Xbox 360(TM) kiosksto play with, thanks to a collaboration between Microsoft Corp. and theCompanions in Courage Foundation. RMHC is the only Colorado children'shospital to receive the custom-built game units from the program.
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The Companions in Courage Foundation, started by hockey great PatLaFontaine, established the Lion's Den Kiosk program with Microsoft Corp.Microsoft delivers the mobile game units to select children's hospitals toprovide interactive, fun entertainment as a respite for children battlinglife-threatening illness.
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"Microsoft is committed to keeping kids entertained in a variety of wayswithin a safe gaming environment, so partnering with Companions in Courage tooffer children in hospitals a way to connect through something as universal asgames, is a natural fit for the work we do," said Microsoft President,Entertainment and Devices Division, Robbie Bach. "The goal for this program isto give these kids a chance to have some fun and just be kids."

Colorado Avalanche hockey greats Peter Budaj and Ruslan Salei broke in thenew game kiosks with pediatric patients today at RMHC.

"We are thrilled that Companions in Courage chose to helpHealthONE's Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children continue to improve the livesof our patients and their families," said Reggie Washington, MD, chief medicalofficer for RMHC. "It is wonderful to witness the joy and excitement of thesechildren and teens when they have a chance to break away from the normalhospital routine and let kids be kids."

The customized and hospital-friendly Xbox 360 kiosks are pre-loaded with avariety of E and E10+ rated games, Y-rated television programs, G-ratedmovies, as well as Xbox LIVE Headset and LIVE Vision Camera capabilities,which enable patients to communicate over a dedicated Xbox LIVE network, theworld's largest social network connected to television. This network wascreated just for the Lion's Den Kiosk program and does not allow patients tocommunicate with individuals outside the network -- only with those childrenat other select hospitals around the country. The Xbox 360's parentalcontrols, known as Family Settings, will be used to help restrict access tocontent outside of ratings parameters, as well as the times during whichpatients can use the kiosks or consoles.

Companions in Courage founder and NHL Hall of Famer Pat LaFontaine said,"Entertainment, creativity and personal connections can be important factorsin alleviating some of the isolation and discomfort these children experienceeach day. Xbox 360 offers young patients a fun escape through games, TV shows,movies and positive interactions with others over the Xbox LIVE network. Thesegaming stations are a perfect complement to our interactive Lion's Denplayrooms."

About Xbox 360

Xbox 360 is a superior video game and entertainment system delivering thebest games, unique entertainment features and a unified online gaming networkthat revolve around gamers. Xbox 360 has a portfolio of more than 300 games innearly 40 countries. More information can be found online athttp://www.xbox.com/xbox360.

About Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children

Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children (RMHC) is a regional resource forspecialty pediatric care founded nearly twenty years ago by private practicepediatric specialists at HealthONE's Presbyterian/St. Luke's Medical Center incentral Denver. It is home to the region's largest and most successfulhigh-risk maternity service and an 84-bed intensive care newborn nursery --keeping mothers and babies together in the same hospital for optimal care.RMHC will move into a new, $113 million pediatric facility opening on the P/SLcampus in 2010, expanding its pediatric services into a new 64-bed inpatientunit and creating additional operating room and pediatric intensive careareas.

RMHC's focus on patient care and quality monitoring extends throughoutHealthONE's family of hospitals to enhance existing services and bringspecialty care closer to patients in their home community. HealthONEhospitals provided care to nearly 100,000 children in 2007 through inpatientand outpatient services, making HealthONE the largest healthcare provider inMetro Denver for adults and kids.

About Companions in Courage

The Companions in Courage Foundation was founded by NHL Hall of Famer PatLaFontaine in 1997. CiC builds interactive playrooms in hospitals throughoutNorth America. Through innovative communications tools, these "Lion's Den"playrooms replace the isolation of a hospital with a connection to family,friends and celebrities during each hospital stay.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft is the worldwide leader in software, servicesand solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

SOURCE Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children
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