It's never a bad idea to be aware of what hospitals excel in a particular area of health care around the U.S. Thus, U.S. News & World Report annually ranks the medical centers across the country and spans 16 medical specialties from cancer to urology.
The list is compiled by the magazine's editors based on what they deem are the best medical centers for patients with life-threatening or rare conditions. Patient survival rates, adequate nursing staff, reputation with specialist physicians and patient safety are among the factors considered as the list is put together.
"U.S. News strives to provide patients and their families with the most comprehensive data available on hospitals," explained Avery Comarow, U.S. News health-rankings editor. "With an estimated 400,000 deaths occurring in hospitals each year from medical errors, measuring safety performance is critical to understanding how well a hospital cares for its patients."
Sifting through data for nearly 5,000 hospitals based on surveys with over 9,500 physicians, the list includes the top overall hospitals as well as the best in a number of specific categories.
"We sifted through data for nearly 5,000 hospitals and results from surveys of more than 9,500 physicians to rank the best centers in 16 adult specialties from cancer to urology," the report details. "Death rates, patient safety and hospital reputation were a few of the many factors we considered. Only 144 hospitals were nationally ranked in a specialty. The Honor Roll features 17 Best Hospitals that scored near the top in at least six specialties."
Pulling from the various lists they've compiled, here is a look at some of best hospitals the U.S. has to offer:
Best Overall Hospitals:
1. Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn.
2. Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston
3. Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore
4. Cleveland Clinic
5. UCLA Medical Center, Los Angeles
Best Cancer Hospitals:
1. Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York
2. University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston
3. Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn.
4. Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women's Cancer Center, Boston
5. Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore
Best Cardiology/Heart Surgery Hospitals:
1. Cleveland Clinic
2. Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn.
3. New York-Presbyterian University Hospital of Columbia and Cornell, New York
4. Duke University Hospital, Durham, N.C.
5. Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston
