91探花Medical Center has moved up one place in its ranking among the premier hospitals in the country, according to U.S.News & World Report鈥檚 2004 annual guide to 鈥淎merica鈥檚 Best Hospitals,鈥� which will be updated in its July 12 issue, available now.
91探花Medical Center was ranked ninth in the nation among the 2,113 major medical centers considered in this year鈥檚 survey, tied with New York-Presbyterian Hospital. Last year, UWMC was ranked 10th. 91探花Medical Center has been consistently ranked among the top hospitals nationally by U.S. News since 1993, and has moved up the Honor Roll during the past six years from 14th to ninth.
In specialty rankings, 12 91探花Medical Center programs are now ranked among the top 20 in the country. UWMC ranked among the leading programs nationwide in hormonal disorders (7); orthopaedics (9); cancer (10); digestive disorders (10); ear, nose and throat (12); respiratory disorders (14); kidney disease (16); neurology and neurosurgery (17); rheumatology (18) and gynecology, (20). The urology program was ranked 27th.
The rehabilitation program, which is based at both 91探花Medical Center and Harborview Medical Center, is now ranked second in the nation. Geriatrics, also based at both hospitals, ranked 10th.
Harborview, which is owned by King County and operated by the 91探花, ranked 16th in orthopaedics.
Children鈥檚 Hospital and Regional Medical Center, which is closely affiliated with the 91探花School of Medicine, ranked 16th in pediatrics.
鈥淲e are honored to have 91探花Medical Center selected again as one of the top 10 hospitals in the nation,鈥� said Kathleen Sellick, UWMC executive director. 鈥淚 am very proud of our physician faculty, nurses and staff and the outstanding care which they provide every day for our patients. We are grateful that these renowned services can be available to the entire region.鈥�
鈥淚t is a tribute to our doctors and nurses that they can achieve this level of clinical care quality while maintaining nationally recognized research and teaching programs. Attaining excellence in any one of these areas is noteworthy 鈥� that our team excels in all of these is remarkable,鈥� said Dr. Ed Walker, UWMC medical director.
For 12 of the 17 specialties ranked, U.S. News, in conjunction with the National Opinion Research Center, evaluated hospitals using a mathematical model combining reputation among board-certified specialists, death rate statistics, and other medical data such as the various medical technologies available.
In the other five specialties 鈥� ophthalmology, pediatrics, psychiatry, rehabilitation and rheumatology 鈥� rankings were based on a reputational survey of physicians.
For the first time, the survey methodology included whether a facility is designated as a Magnet Hospital by the American Nurse Credentialing Center for meeting high standards of nursing excellence. 91探花Medical Center was the first in the nation to be designated a Magnet Hospital in 1994 and the first to receive the honor three times.
Besides 91探花Medical Center, U.S. News鈥� Honor Roll of the nation鈥檚 best hospitals includes Johns Hopkins Hospital, Mayo Clinic, Massachusetts General Hospital, Cleveland Clinic, UCLA Medical Center, Duke University Medical Center, University of California San Francisco Medical Center, Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis, New York-Presbyterian Hospital, University of Michigan Medical Center, Brigham and Women鈥檚 Hospital in Boston, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and Stanford Hospital and Clinics.
For more information on the rankings, go to