Becker's Hospital Review is pleased to announce its 2013 annual list of "100 Great Hospitals." Each of following organizations have an interesting story behind them, some dating back to the 18th century, and contribute to the American healthcare landscape, whether they be community hospitals or academic medical centers, large flagship facilities or small specialty hospitals. These organizations continually improve upon themselves and are innovators for medical treatments, research, technology and care delivery. These hospitals are home to medical breakthroughs and act as anchors of health within their respective communities.
To develop this list, the Becker's Hospital Review editorial team accepted nominations, conducted research and considered other reputable hospital ranking sources such as U.S. News & World Report, Truven Health Analytics' 100 Top Hospitals, HealthGrades, Magnet Recognition by the American Nurses Credentialing Center, the Studer Group and Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award recipients.
Editor's note: This list is not a ranking, and hospitals are displayed in alphabetical order. This list is not an endorsement of included hospitals or associated healthcare providers, and hospitals cannot pay to be included on this list.
Abbott Northwestern Hospital (Minneapolis). What started as a small rented house more than 130 years ago eventually became the Abbott Northwestern Hospital of today. Forty-four women founded Abbott Northwestern in 1882 as the Northwestern Hospital for Women and Children, which is now the 627-bed flagship of Minneapolis-based Allina Health. The Minneapolis Heart Institute at Abbott Northwestern delivers care through its integrated cardiovascular care model, which combines clinical research, scientific innovation and medical services.
Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital (Downers Grove, Ill.). The 340-bed Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital, part of Advocate Health Care, the largest health system in Illinois, has more than 950 physicians across 59 specialties. It is the only Level I trauma center in DuPage County, and it was the 2010 recipient of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award for healthcare excellence. Advocate Good Samaritan was also named as one of the top 100 hospitals in the country for 2013 by both Truven Health Analytics and HealthGrades.
Aultman Hospital (Canton, Ohio). Aultman Hospital officially opened its doors in 1892 after the daughter of local banker Cornelius Aultman and her stepmother deeded 4.5 acres of land to the Aultman Hospital Association. The 808-bed, Magnet-designated hospital is now a regional healthcare leader, as HealthGrades named it as one of its top 100 hospitals for 2013. Within Aultman is the largest hospital/physician-based PPO in northeastern Ohio, AultCare, which covers more than 530,000 people. Aultman has outlined a "2020 Health Vision," with a goal of making its county healthier by 2020 through the promotion of better health behaviors and improved social and economic factors.
Aurora BayCare Medical Center (Green Bay, Wis.). Since September 2001, Aurora BayCare Medical Center has served the Green Bay community with high-quality healthcare through physician-led decision making. The 167-bed Aurora BayCare, a joint venture between Milwaukee-based Aurora Health Care and Green Bay-based BayCare Clinic, is one of the largest physician-owned hospitals in Wisconsin. Since 2010, Aurora BayCare has received 18 different HealthGrades awards, including the Distinguished Hospital Award for Clinical Excellence for the past two years.
Avera McKennan Hospital & University Health Center (Sioux Falls, S.D.). With 545 beds, Avera McKennan Hospital & University Health Center is one of the largest hospitals and tertiary centers in South Dakota. Included within Avera McKennan is a 55-bed heart hospital, as well as the Avera Children's Hospital & Clinics. The original hospital, McKennan Hospital, opened in 1911 with 55 patient beds and living spaces for 20 nurses and nuns. This year, Avera McKennan was named to 100 Top Hospitals by Truven Health Analytics and was ranked as the top hospital in South Dakota by U.S. News & World Report.
Barnes-Jewish Hospital (St. Louis). Barnes-Jewish Hospital, the result of a 1996 merger between Barnes Hospital and The Jewish Hospital of St. Louis, is licensed for 1,158 beds, according to its fiscal year 2011 figures. The teaching hospital is affiliated with Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, and it is the flagship institution of BJC HealthCare. Barnes-Jewish is the recipient of numerous awards and home to dozens of medical breakthroughs, including the first U.S. surgery that relocated a salivary gland to restore moisture to a tear duct, which has since saved or recovered the eyesight of patients. This year, the Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital opened a new $27.5 million outpatient facility in south St. Louis County.
Baylor University Medical Center (Dallas). In 1903, Baylor University Medical Center — then known as Texas Baptist Memorial Sanitarium — began serving Dallas-area patients in a 14-room renovated house. Today, the academic medical center has 1,065 licensed beds through six connected facilities, 5,500 employees and more than 1,000 physicians. In its most recent rankings, U.S. News & World Report graded Baylor, the flagship of Dallas-based Baylor Health Care System, as a nationally ranked institution for gastroenterology, nephrology, orthopedics, pulmonology, urology and gynecology. In early 2012, Baylor opened its $125 million Baylor Cancer Hospital, the first dedicated cancer hospital in the region.
Baystate Medical Center (Springfield, Mass.). Baystate Medical Center, a 716-bed teaching hospital and affiliate of Tufts University School of Medicine, made headlines in 2012 after it completed construction on its new 600,000-square-foot "Hospital of the Future." The Magnet-designated hospital has the second-busiest emergency department in Massachusetts and is the only Level I trauma center in the western part of the state. Baystate, which was named to 100 Top Hospitals by Truven Health Analytics this year, also recently opened a new $45 million emergency and trauma center.
Beaumont Hospital (Troy, Mich.). Beaumont Health System has three distinguished hospitals within its network, and its Troy campus has become a leading, high-volume community hospital. Beaumont Hospital in Troy has 418 beds, and in 2012, it recorded nearly 30,000 patient admissions, 18,000 surgeries and 80,000 emergency department visits. The Magnet-designated hospital has received numerous awards from HealthGrades over the past three years, and Truven Health Analytics named the Troy campus to its 100 Top Hospitals this year. This past December, Beaumont Health System and Henry Ford Health System in Detroit formed a task force to complete their merger, which was announced in October.
Bethesda North Hospital (Cincinnati). Bethesda North Hospital opened in 1970 as a satellite campus to Bethesda Oak, which was a hospital that operated for more than 100 years before closing in 2000. In 1995, Bethesda North merged with Good Samaritan Hospital to form TriHealth, the non-profit parent organization. The 375-bed hospital has earned numerous awards throughout its history, including a spot on Truven Health Analytics' 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals this year. It was also only one of two hospitals in the Cincinnati area to make HealthGrades' 100 best hospitals report for 2013.
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (Boston). The Boston landscape is filled with renowned hospitals and academic medical centers, and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center fits the mold. The 649-bed teaching hospital, an affiliate of Harvard Medical School, has 1,250 physicians on its active medical staff. It also contains the oldest clinical research laboratory in the country, the Harvard-Thorndike Laboratory. Beth Israel Deaconess, which opened its doors in 1896 as a 14-bed infirmary, was also the only Boston-based teaching hospital to make Truven Health Analytics' 100 Top Hospitals list this year. In 2012, the hospital recorded nearly 51,000 inpatient discharges and 550,000 outpatient visits.
Billings (Mont.) Clinic Hospital. The largest employer in the Billings community, Billings Clinic's downtown campus includes the 272-bed Billings Clinic Hospital, a surgery center and the region's largest multispecialty group practice with 46 physician specialties. The hospital is the only Magnet-designated healthcare organization in Montana, and Truven Health Analytics named the facility to its 100 Top Hospitals for 2013. In January, Billings Clinic was selected as a member of the Mayo Clinic Care Network, which allows organizations to share expertise and best practices to improve healthcare quality and delivery.
Bon Secours Memorial Regional Medical Center (Mechanicsville, Va.). Since 2010, the 225-bed Bon Secours Memorial Regional Medical Center has garnered nearly two dozen individual awards from HealthGrades, ranging from outstanding patient experience to stroke care excellence to overall clinical excellence. Memorial Regional has more than 1,000 physicians and 3,000 full- and part-time employees. The hospital, which opened in 1998, also has a cancer institute, heart and vascular institute, orthopedic institute and ambulatory surgery center, making it one of the most comprehensive providers in the northwest suburb of Richmond.
Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital (Charleston, S.C.). Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital's roots date back to 1882. Five members of the Sisters of Charity of Our Lady of Mercy opened the hospital in a small building in downtown Charleston, making it the first Catholic-based hospital in South Carolina. The 204-bed hospital, part of Roper St. Francis Healthcare, has received several accolades over the past year from Truven Health Analytics, HealthGrades, CareChex and others, and U.S. News & World Report also ranked the hospital as high-performing in four adult specialties.
Brigham and Women's Hospital (Boston). With its history dating back more than 180 years, Brigham and Women's Hospital is home to many medical firsts, such as the world's first successful human organ transplant and the country's first triple-organ transplant. This year, U.S. News & World Report ranked the 793-bed Brigham and Women's among the 50 best hospitals in the nation for 13 different adult specialties, including second-best in gynecology. Elizabeth Nabel, MD, former director of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute at the National Institutes of Health, has served as president of Brigham and Women's since January 2010.
Bronson Methodist Hospital (Kalamazoo, Mich.). Bronson Methodist Hospital, a 404-bed facility and the flagship of Bronson Healthcare Group, was ranked as one of the top hospitals in southwestern Michigan this past year, according to U.S. News & World Report. A former Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award recipient, Bronson Methodist provided nearly $55 million in community benefit in 2010, which included charity care and other subsidized healthcare services. The Environmental Protection Agency, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, HealthGrades and Practice Greenhealth have also touted the hospital's achievements.
Carolinas Medical Center-Mercy (Charlotte, N.C.). In 1906, the Sisters of Mercy founded Carolinas Medical Center-Mercy as the first Catholic hospital in North Carolina. In 1995, the 196-bed hospital became part of Charlotte, N.C.-based Carolinas HealthCare System, and today it provides a full spectrum of services, including cardiac care, sleep services, emergency services and orthopedics. Truven Health Analytics named Carolinas Medical Center-Mercy as one of its 100 Top Hospitals in 2013, the first time the hospital has received the award.
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center (Los Angeles). Cedars-Sinai Medical Center started as a 12-bed facility in 1902, then known as Kaspare Cohn Hospital. Now the non-profit academic medical center has nearly 900 beds, more than 2,000 physicians in every medical specialty and 10,000 total employees. Cedars-Sinai is consistently ranked among the best hospitals along the West Coast and in the country by U.S. News & World Report. In addition, for more than 20 years, Cedars-Sinai has ranked first in health quality, physician quality, nursing quality and other categories by National Research Corp. Since 2011, Cedars-Sinai has collaborated with health insurer WellPoint to develop clinical decision support solutions with IBM's Watson technology.
Central DuPage Hospital (Winfield, Ill.). Central DuPage Hospital opened its doors in 1964 as a 113-bed hospital, but its roots date back to 1908, when the Chicago-Winfield Tuberculosis Sanatorium operated by what is now Central DuPage's main entrance. Today, Central DuPage has 313 beds, a medical staff of more than 900 physicians and a Magnet-designated nursing staff. The hospital — ranked among the 100 best in the country by Truven Health Analytics and a top orthopedic hospital as ranked by U.S. News & World Report in 2013 — recently passed its two-year anniversary as the flagship hospital of Cadence Health, which was the result of a merger between Central DuPage Health System and Delnor Community Health System in Geneva, Ill.
Chesterfield General Hospital (Cheraw, S.C.). Chesterfield General Hospital, a 59-bed hospital and sole provider within Chesterfield County, is based in the historic, rural community of Cheraw, which has a population of roughly 9,000. The hospital offers a wide array of specialties, including a new cardiology service line and bariatric center. Chesterfield General, which has 250 employees and is part of Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems, recently was named a top 10 CHS hospital for high scores in two major indicators of the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems.
The Christ Hospital (Cincinnati). For almost 125 years, The Christ Hospital has served the greater Cincinnati area. It was founded in 1889 by a missionary named Isabella Thoburn, who opened the facility with 10 beds. The Christ Hospital currently has 555 beds and roughly 4,000 employees. For its 2012-13 rankings, U.S. News & World Report pegged the hospital as number one in the Cincinnati metropolitan area. The hospital was also ranked nationally ranked for diabetes/endocrinology and orthopedics. Earlier this year, The Christ Hospital's physician group acquired two physician practices, one centered on spine surgery and the other around otolaryngology.
Christiana Hospital (Newark, Del.). Christiana Hospital, a 913-bed teaching facility and the flagship of Christiana Care Health System, is the largest hospital in Delaware and one of the busiest hospitals in the country. The hospital, along with its other campuses, is among the top 35, by volume, for admissions, births, emergency department visits and total surgeries. Christiana Hospital is the only Level I trauma center between Baltimore and Philadelphia and the only delivering hospital in Delaware with a Level III neonatal intensive care unit. U.S. News & World Report ranked Christiana Hospital 45th in the country last year for gastroenterology.
Cleveland Clinic. Few healthcare organizations compare to Cleveland Clinic, a 1,400-bed academic medical center in the heart of Ohio's second-largest city. Four physicians built the hospital in 1921 after they were impressed with the military's efficient medicine practices during World War I. This past year, U.S. News & World Report ranked Cleveland Clinic as the best hospital in Ohio, the fourth-best hospital in the country and the top overall hospital for cardiology and nephrology. This year, Cleveland Clinic announced a groundbreaking strategic alliance with for-profit Community Health Systems, based in Franklin, Tenn. Cleveland Clinic will help CHS with several quality efforts, including physician best practices, heart care and telehealth.
Duke University Hospital (Durham, N.C.). Duke University Hospital's roots trace back to 1930, when the hospital opened after three years of construction. James B. Duke established The Duke Endowment, which created the Duke School of Medicine and Duke University Hospital. The 924-bed academic medical center has been the site of several medical accomplishments, including the creation of the nation's first brain tumor program and development of the nation's first outpatient bone marrow transplant program. U.S. News & World Report ranked Duke University Hospital as the top hospital in North Carolina and eighth-best in the country in 2013.
Emory University Hospital (Atlanta). In 1904, Emory University Hospital — then Wesley Memorial Hospital — was chartered with 50 beds. Nearly 110 years later, Emory is a 579-bed academic medical center with ties to the Emory University School of Medicine. U.S. News & World Report ranked Emory as one of the top hospitals in Georgia, and its renowned specialties have supported its accolades. It is the only multiple-organ transplant center in Georgia, and Emory physicians have pioneered several medical procedures, including angioplasty, corneal transplants and microelectrode-guided pallidotomy for the treatment of Parkinson's disease.
Evanston (Ill.) Hospital. Evanston Hospital, the flagship of NorthShore University HealthSystem, opened in 1891. The 743-bed hospital is a teaching affiliate of the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine and provides some of the most specialized care in the Chicagoland area. This year, Truven Health Analytics named Evanston as one of its 100 Top Hospitals. In September, Evanston and NorthShore announced they were joining the Mayo Clinic Care Network to provide patients with access to medical resources and expertise from both systems.
Florida Hospital (Orlando). Florida Hospital, the flagship of Altamonte Springs, Fla.-based Adventist Health System, is one of the largest and busiest hospitals in the country. Florida Hospital has more than 2,200 beds, treats more patients than any other hospital in the United States and has the largest family medicine residency in Florida. Earlier this year, it broke ground on a $210 million women's hospital, which is scheduled to open in 2015. Florida Hospital is nationally ranked in seven adult specialties, including gynecology, cardiology and urology, according to U.S. News & World Report's most recent rankings.
Froedtert Hospital (Milwaukee). Froedtert Hospital and The Medical College of Wisconsin comprise a 500-bed academic medical center — the only one in eastern Wisconsin. It has more than 5,000 employees and had more than 27,000 admissions in its most recent fiscal year. Together, Froedtert & The Medical College of Wisconsin have been home to several medical firsts. Froedtert was one of the first hospitals in the country to offer intra-arterial chemotherapy for head and neck tumors, for instance. The Magnet-designated hospital has collected several awards over the years, and for 2012-13, U.S. News & World Report ranked Froedtert as the top hospital in the Milwaukee metropolitan area and ranked it nationally in four adult specialties.
Gaston Memorial Hospital (Gastonia, N.C.). The 435-bed Gaston Memorial Hospital was founded in 1946 following World War II. In 1973, Gaston Memorial established its school of nursing, and that same year, it relocated to its current site. Today, it is the flagship facility of CaroMont Health and houses several of CaroMont's signature centers of excellence, including the CaroMont Cancer Center and CaroMont Diabetes Center. The Magnet-designated facility has received several accolades from CareChex, Premier and HealthGrades. It also was named to 100 Top Hospitals by Truven Health Analytics in 2013.
Geisinger Medical Center (Danville, Pa.). Founded in 1915, the 545-bed Geisinger Medical Center has become a pillar in American healthcare. The hospital is part of Geisinger Health System, the integrated delivery system hailed by President Barack Obama for its low costs and high-quality care. The system was also named to Truven Health Analytics' list of 15 Top Health Systems in 2013. Geisinger Medical Center, which is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence, includes a Level I trauma center and offers patients access to clinical trials. Last fall, the hospital partnered with Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania to provide bachelor's and master's degree programs in nursing, beginning in fall 2013.
Grant Medical Center (Columbus, Ohio). Grant Medical Center, founded in 1900, is one of eight hospitals within the OhioHealth system. With 640 beds and a Level I trauma center, this teaching hospital's physicians perform more than 20,000 surgeries every year. Grant Medical Center is Magnet-designated for nursing excellence. For 2012-13, U.S. News & World Report ranked Grant Medical Center 49th in the country for both gastroenterology and pulmonology, and as a high-performing hospital in 10 other specialties.
Gundersen Lutheran Medical Center (La Crosse, Wis.). The 325-bed Gundersen Lutheran Medical Center is the nucleus of Gundersen Lutheran Health System, which currently has a strategic plan to be 100-percent energy independent by 2014. The hospital formed from the merger between Gundersen Clinic and Lutheran Hospital-La Crosse in 1995. Since 2010, Gundersen Lutheran has garnered 50 awards from HealthGrades, ranging from general surgery excellence to cardiac care excellence. This year, Gundersen Lutheran formed a partnership with a physician group to enhance cardiac services at Allen Hospital in Waterloo, Iowa.
Hackensack (N.J.) University Medical Center. When Hackensack University Medical Center was founded in 1888 with 12 beds, it was the first hospital in Bergen County. Ranked as the top hospital in New Jersey by U.S. News & World Report, the medical center is nationally recognized in eight adult specialties and one pediatric specialty. Hackensack was one of the many hospitals along the East Coast to feel the sting of Superstorm Sandy this past fall. It deployed a mobile satellite emergency department, funded through a partnership with the U.S. Department of Defense, to help patients in need.
Henrico Doctors' Hospital (Richmond, Va.). With 767 licensed beds, Henrico Doctors' Hospital is one of the biggest within the seven-hospital HCA Virginia. For three straight years, HealthGrades has named Henrico as one of America's 50 Best Hospitals, and in 2013, Henrico also captured HealthGrades excellence awards in joint replacement, orthopedic surgery, pulmonary care and stroke care. Last year, Henrico opened an $11.2 million freestanding emergency room, and it also plans to build a 97-bed hospital near the ER.
Henry Ford Hospital (Detroit). Henry Ford Hospital is an 802-bed tertiary care hospital and flagship facility of Henry Ford Health System. It has been a bastion for Michigan healthcare for roughly 100 years, earning accolades across most of its specialties. Henry Ford Hospital treats more cancer patients than any other hospital in Michigan, and it was the first hospital in Michigan to perform a new catheter-based procedure to treat structural heart disease. If the proposed merger between Henry Ford Health System and Royal Oak, Mich.-based Beaumont Health System is approved, Henry Ford Hospital would be the second-largest hospital within the new system.
Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian (Newport Beach, Calif.). Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian has been serving patients in Orange County since 1952, and the 579-bed hospital is ranked 43rd in the country for orthopedics, according to last year's rankings from U.S. News & World Report. Hoag is part of a commercial accountable care organization with Greater Newport Physicians Medical Group and Blue Shield of California. In February, Hoag announced it and Orange, Calif.-based St. Joseph Health completed an affiliation and will now operate under a new parent organization, Covenant Health Network.
Hospital for Special Surgery (New York City). The 205-bed Hospital for Special Surgery opened its doors in 1863, making it the oldest orthopedic hospital in the United States. For 22 straight years, U.S. News & World Report has ranked the hospital among the best in the country for orthopedics and rheumatology, and it's also nationally recognized for neurology and neurosurgery. Hospital for Special Surgery has 286 active medical staff members, who are the official team physicians for five professional sports teams. It is also a hub for major research, as the National Institutes of Health currently provides the hospital with $48.1 million in funding for 48 different studies.
Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia). Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania is one of the oldest and most prestigious academic medical centers in the country. The 784-bed hospital was founded in 1765 within Penn Medicine, and it currently has roughly 2,000 physicians on its staff. U.S. News & World Report ranked the hospital nationally in 13 adult specialties, with otolaryngology and urology as its highest-rated services. Last summer, CMS chose Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania as one of five hospitals for its Graduate Nurse Education Demonstration, which focuses on clinically training advanced practice registered nursing students.
Indiana University Health Methodist Hospital (Indianapolis). Ranked as an Honor Roll hospital by U.S. News & World Report in 2013, Indiana University Health Methodist Hospital is the flagship facility of the 16-hospital IU Health — the largest health system in the state. The Magnet hospital has won several Beacon Awards and accolades from the University HealthSystem Consortium for its clinical outcomes. This year, IU Health Methodist's orthopedics program affiliated with the Indiana Hand to Shoulder Center, one of the largest, freestanding hand surgery facilities in the world.
Inova Fair Oaks Hospital (Fairfax, Va.). The 182-bed Inova Fair Oaks Hospital has several signature service lines, ranging from the Inova Spine Program to its minimally invasive gynecology center of excellence. For 2012-13, the hospital was ranked among the best in northern Virginia by U.S. News & World Report, and Truven Health Analytics also named Inova Fair Oaks to its 100 Top Hospitals list. Last year, Inova Fair Oaks broke ground on a $31 million medical office building that will include a new radiation oncology cancer center. It is expected to open in early 2014.
John Muir Medical Center (Walnut Creek, Calif.). John Muir Medical Center, a 572-bed facility, is the only trauma center within its county. For two straight years, HealthGrades has named the hospital as one of America's 100 Best Hospitals, and it has also received HealthGrades excellence awards for high quality in pulmonary care, neurosurgery and several other service lines. John Muir has also made news as of late, as it recently acquired a 49 percent interest in San Ramon (Calif.) Regional Medical Center in a joint venture with Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare. In 2011, the hospital opened its $612 million Tom and Billie Long Patient Care Tower.
The Johns Hopkins Hospital (Baltimore). The name Johns Hopkins has been synonymous with world-class healthcare since its founding in 1889. According to U.S. News & World Report's 2012-13 rankings, Johns Hopkins was nationally ranked in 16 adult specialties and 10 pediatric specialties — making it one of the best hospitals for more than a decade now. In addition to its numerous medical breakthroughs, research studies and clinical trials, Johns Hopkins revamped its campus last April with a new $1.1 billion facility. The project created the Sheikh Zayed Cardiovascular and Critical Care Tower and The Charlotte R. Bloomberg Children's Center. The 1.6 million-square-foot facility includes 560 private patient rooms, 33 operating rooms, and adult and pediatric emergency departments.
Kendall Regional Medical Center (Miami). Kendall Regional Medical Center is a 412-bed, full-service hospital and one of 15 hospitals within HCA East Florida. Kendall has developed several centers of excellence, including the Heart and Vascular Institute and the Orthopedic & Spine Institute. The hospital has received three dozen awards from HealthGrades since 2010, including being named one of America's 50 Best Hospitals for two straight years. Kendall has also been recognized for quality healthcare by The Leapfrog Group, Blue Cross Blue Shield and Truven Health Analytics.
Lankenau Medical Center (Wynnewood, Pa.). Lankenau Medical Center's history began in 1860, when it started as a 50-bed house known as the German Hospital of the City of Philadelphia. John Lankenau, a wealthy Philadelphia merchant and the hospital's namesake, served as the hospital's president from 1869 until his death in 1901. Today, the 353-bed Lankenau Medical Center is one of the premier academic medical centers in the Philadelphia area, as it is a high-performing hospital in seven specialties, according to U.S. News & World Report. It was named to Truven Health Analytics' 100 Top Hospitals and 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals lists, and the hospital also has received awards from The Society of Thoracic Surgeons, Blue Cross Blue Shield and other organizations.
LDS Hospital (Salt Lake City). LDS Hospital, part of Intermountain Healthcare, also based in Salt Lake City, is a 217-bed community hospital. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints established the hospital in 1905 and was largely funded by W. H. Groves, a dentist and member of the church who came to Utah from England. U.S. News & World Report ranked LDS Hospital as the top hospital in Utah this past year, and LDS Hospital is also ranked 29th in the country in gynecology. HealthGrades has also bestowed several awards to the hospital, including excellence in critical care, emergency medicine and joint replacement. In December, LDS Hospital became the first hospital in Utah to offer bronchial thermoplasty to patients with severe asthma.
Massachusetts General Hospital (Boston). Last year, Massachusetts General Hospital did something that hadn't occurred in 21 years — it displaced The Johns Hopkins Hospital as the top overall hospital in the United States, according to U.S. News & World Report. The 907-bed academic medical center, the third-oldest general hospital in the country, sits in the hospital capital of the world: Boston. Mass General is the oldest and original teaching hospital for the world-renowned Harvard Medical School, which has an annual research budget of more than $760 million. Last year, the hospital opened its new Angelman Syndrome Clinic — one of only two in the country — to treat patients with Angelman syndrome, a congenital disorder appearing in newborns and lasting through adulthood that is often associated with autism and causes severe neurological impairment.
Mayo Clinic (Rochester, Minn.). Ranked third overall among all hospitals in the country by U.S. News & World Report, Mayo Clinic has served patients for 150 years. It started as a private practice by William Worrall Mayo, MD, and later included his two sons. Now, roughly 55,000 physicians, nurses, scientists, students and allied health staff comprise the Mayo Clinic system throughout the Midwest, Arizona and Florida. This year, Mayo Clinic announced a $5 billion economic development initiative called Destination Medical Center to secure Minnesota's status as a global medical destination center. Mayo Clinic CEO John Noseworthy, MD, also said he wants to expand the Mayo Clinic Care Network nationally and internationally to reach 200 million people by 2020.
MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center (Baltimore). Baltimore is a haven for many renowned healthcare organizations, and MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center has become part of that niche. The Magnet-designated hospital is licensed for 376 beds, has 700 physicians on staff and recorded more than 114,000 emergency department visits in 2012, making it the busiest ED in Maryland. MedStar Franklin has received several accolades over the years, including awards from HealthGrades and Practice Greenhealth, and U.S. News & World Report said the hospital was a high-performing institution for cancer, neurosurgery and eight other specialties.
Memorial Hermann Memorial City Medical Center (Houston). Since 1971, Memorial Hermann Memorial City Medical Center has been a clinical hub within the Houston-based Memorial Hermann Health System. It has 426 licensed beds and encompasses the 33-story Memorial Hermann Tower, which includes Houston's first dedicated women's and children's facilities outside of the Texas Medical Center. Roughly 1,000 physicians staff Memorial Hermann Memorial City, and it is one of 55 hospitals in the country with the lowest 30-day readmission rates for pneumonia patients. This year, HealthGrades and Truven Health Analytics each recognized Memorial Hermann Memorial City as one of the 100 best hospitals in the country.
Mercy Medical Center (Cedar Rapids, Iowa). Mercy Medical Center in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, has one of the more unique histories. After the Sisters of Mercy opened a 15-bed house in 1900, the group realized it needed a bigger space. The Sisters turned to an unusual source for funding: the horse track. Two men who owned the racing rights at the county fair donated one day's racing receipts toward the proposed building. Today, the 314-bed hospital has received awards from HealthGrades, Truven Health Analytics, CareChex, WomenCertified and others. In January, the hospital launched a "first-in-nation" pharmaceutical oncology robot for compounding and dispensing injectable chemotherapy medications.
The Methodist Hospital (Houston). With 766 beds, The Methodist Hospital stands as the flagship hospital of The Methodist Hospital System and Texas Medical Center in Houston. It has been the site of several medical breakthroughs, including the world's first multiple-organ transplant in the 1960s and the development of a minimally invasive procedure to repair brain aneurysms. The Methodist Hospital has more than 1,800 affiliated physicians, and it holds academic affiliations with Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Baylor College of Medicine and several others. Last year, U.S. News & World Report ranked the hospital number one in Houston and nationally ranked 13 of its adult specialties.
Middlesex Hospital (Middletown, Conn.). Middlesex Hospital is a 156-bed facility that dates back to 1904. It was Connecticut's first and only hospital to receive Magnet designation for nursing excellence from the American Nurses Credentialing Center in 2001, and Middlesex was also one of the first hospitals in the state to formally share its quality performance measures with the public in 2004. Truven Health Analytics named Middlesex to its list of 100 Top Hospitals in 2013.
Mission Hospital (Asheville, N.C.). Mission Hospital is a non-profit, independent community hospital located roughly 120 miles west of Charlotte, N.C. The busiest surgical hospital in the state, Mission is anchored by seven centers of excellence and offers a range of other surgical and support services. It is partnered with UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center in Chapel Hill, N.C., for cancer care and was named to Truven Health Analytics' list of 100 Top Hospitals in 2013, its fifth year to receive such recognition since it was founded in 1996. Mission Health, the hospital's Asheville-based parent, was also named as one of the Top 15 Health Systems in the country by Truven in 2012.
Mount Sinai Hospital (New York City). Mount Sinai Hospital is a 1,171-bed hospital that dates back to 1852, when nine men agreed to carry out their vision for free medical care for New York City's Jewish population. Throughout its history, Mount Sinai has been home to a number of medical firsts and breakthroughs, including identifying the connection between the collapse of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, to first responders' risk for heart problems. U.S. News & World Report ranked Mount Sinai 14th on its elite Honor Roll of the nation's top hospitals in 2012. Mount Sinai has also made headlines recently, as it is exploring a merger with New York City-based Continuum Health Partners.
NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital (New York City). Founded in 1771, NewYork-Presbyterian is the second-oldest hospital in the country and America's largest non-profit, non-sectarian hospital, with 2,409 beds. The hospital's affiliations with Weill Cornell Medical College and Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York City drive groundbreaking research and medical treatments. This year, NewYork-Presbyterian and Weill Cornell launched the Institute for Precision Medicine, a research hub to explore personalized treatments based on patients' genetic profiles. NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital ranked first in New York and seventh in the country out of the approximately 5,000 hospitals evaluated by U.S. News & World Report in its 2012-13 rankings.
North Colorado Medical Center (Greeley). North Colorado Medical Center, founded in 1904, is a 378-bed hospital about 50 miles north of Denver. The hospital is part of Phoenix-based Banner Health, which was named to Truven Health Analytics' 15 Top Health Systems in 2013. North Colorado includes about 250 physicians and has been nationally recognized for its burn, trauma care and cardiac programs. In April 2012, the North Colorado Medical Center Breast Center was designated a Breast Imaging Center of Excellence by the American College of Radiology. The hospital was also named to HealthGrades' America's 100 Best Hospitals list in 2012 and Truven's list of 100 Top Hospitals in 2013.
Northeast Georgia Medical Center (Gainesville). Northeast Georgia Medical Center is a 435-bed, non-profit community hospital located about 55 miles northeast of Atlanta. The hospital offers a range of health services, but is especially renowned for its cardiology services and has received recognition from HealthGrades for its heart care. Recently, as part of a clinical trial, physicians at Northeast Georgia were the first in the nation to implant a new type of mesh tube during a heart bypass surgery, which could alter the way traditional bypasses have been performed since the late 1960s. Northeast Georgia was named to Truven Health Analytics' list of 100 Top Hospitals and HealthGrades' list of America's 50 Best Hospitals in 2013.
North Mississippi Medical Center (Tupelo). North Mississippi Medical Center is a non-profit, community-owned, 650-bed flagship hospital for North Mississippi Health Services, which was a 2012 recipient of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. The hospital is the largest, private non-profit hospital in Mississippi and the largest non-metropolitan hospital in the country, serving people from more than 24 counties across three states. In February, North Mississippi physicians implanted a vagal nerve stimulator, which is designed to treat heart failure by stimulating a nerve in the neck. The implantation marked the first time the procedure was performed in Mississippi.
Northwestern Memorial Hospital (Chicago). Founded in 1972 through the merger of two Chicago hospitals, Northwestern Memorial Hospital is affiliated with Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine and includes more than 1,600 affiliated physicians. U.S. News & World Report ranked the hospital number one in the Chicago metropolitan area, number one in Illinois and as the 12th top hospital in the country for its 2012-13 rankings. In March, a team of Northwestern Medicine physicians traveled to facilitate the development of a comprehensive trauma care system in La Paz, Bolivia, which is the poorest country in South America.
Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center (Charlotte, N.C.). Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center opened in 1903 with 20 patient beds. More than a century later, the 463-bed hospital continues to expand its clinical reach. It recently opened a hospital wing with operating rooms and a pediatric emergency department, and is currently building a 64-bed replacement facility for its orthopedic hospital. Presbyterian is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence and, in 2012, Presbyterian Cancer Center was awarded three-year accreditation with commendation as a Network Cancer Program by the Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons. Presbyterian is one of only 30 cancer centers across the country to receive such designation.
NYU Langone Medical Center (New York City). NYU Langone is nestled in the heart of Manhattan. This healthcare hub, which includes a pediatric hospital, hospital for joint diseases and an institute for rehabilitative medicine, dates back to 1841 and serves as the teaching branch for the NYU School of Medicine. U.S. News & World Report rated NYU Langone as the 11th best hospital in the country in its 2012-13 rankings and the hospital was the only organization in New York named to Thomson Reuters' list of 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals in 2012. In February, NYU Langone received a $17 million private donation to establish a veterans' mental health research center to study post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury.
Ochsner Medical Center (New Orleans). Ochsner Medical Center is a 473-bed hospital backed by more than 600 employed physicians in more than 80 specialties. The hospital, which is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence, is one of 25 hospitals nationwide to be ranked within the top 50 hospitals in the country for 11 specialties by U.S. News & World Report for 2012-13. In February, physicians at Ochsner's heart and vascular institute performed the first total artificial heart implant in the Gulf Coast region, making the hospital one of 40 sites in the country certified for this type of procedure.
The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center (Columbus). Located in Ohio's largest city, OSU Wexner Medical Center is especially recognized for its cancer, critical care, heart, medical imaging, neurosciences and transplantation programs — but it also serves as a major research hub, hosting more than 1,000 medical studies. The hospital was the first in central Ohio to receive Magnet designation for nursing excellence, and U.S. News & World Report recognized the hospital for 10 specialties in 2012-13. In March, the NBA tapped experts from OSU Wexner Medical Center to share their knowledge of ACL injuries, as OSU's sports medicine program is equipped with infrared cameras and a special gym floor tiled with motion sensors to determine how likely athletes are to injury their ACLs.
Orthopaedic Hospital of Wisconsin (Glendale). Orthopaedic Hospital of Wisconsin is a 30-bed specialty hospital founded in 2001 through a joint venture between Columbia St. Mary's Hospital in Milwaukee and a group of orthopedic surgeons. Patient satisfaction is a robust component of the hospital's culture. It received HealthGrades' Outstanding Patient Experience Award in 2013, which is based on an analysis of providers' Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems scores. Orthopaedic Hospital also received the Press Ganey Summit Award in 2012, which means the hospital has had inpatient satisfaction levels above the 95th percentile for the past three years. The hospital also supports its local community, providing 30 medical volunteers to deliver free healthcare to dozens of patients at Granville Neighborhood Health Center every six months.
Penn State Milton S. Hershey (Pa.) Medical Center. Penn State Hershey Medical Center was founded in 1963 and named after its late benefactor, philanthropist and American confectioner Milton S. Hershey, founder of Hershey Chocolate Company. The 443-bed medical center includes a children's hospital and cancer, neuroscience and heart and vascular institutes, which are backed by the hospital's employed 900-clinician medical group. The hospital, which is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence, opened its Institute for Personalized Medicine in January. The institute will collaborate with the Penn State Clinical and Translational Science Institute to advance personalized medicine research and translate it into clinical applications.
Pocono Medical Center (East Stroudsburg, Pa.). Pocono Medical Center, located about 100 miles north of Philadelphia, was founded in 1915. It has continued to evolve its care delivery for the local community while upholding its mission to bring world-class care close to home. The hospital is staffed by approximately 230 staffed clinicians and includes a heart and vascular institute, cancer center, and wide array of surgical and support services. Within the past year, Pocono opened a state-of-the-art cancer center, received the outstanding achievement award from the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer, began a joint replacement program and launched a patient-centered medical home.
Poudre Valley Hospital (Fort Collins, Colo). Poudre Valley Hospital came from humble beginnings: The hospital was built in 1925 on a budget of $181,000. In January 2012, the 270-bed regional medical center partnered with academic medical center University of Colorado Hospital to form a new parent organization, University of Colorado Health. Poudre Valley Hospital is Magnet-designated for nursing excellence, is a previous Baldrige National Quality Award recipient and was named one of the 100 Top Hospitals by Truven Health Analytics in 2013, its eight year earning such recognition.
ProMedica Toledo (Ohio) Hospital. ProMedica Toledo is one of the largest-acute care hospitals in its region, totaling 794 beds with more than 1,000 primary care and specialty physicians on staff. In the past year, HealthGrades has awarded ProMedica Toledo with its awards for clinical excellence, patient safety, cardiac care and a range of other recognitions. Last May, the hospital opened a 20-bed stroke unit that includes all private rooms, 24-hour MRI services and telemedicine capabilities to better identify, measure, treat and prevent strokes.
Providence Hospital (Southfield, Mich.). Providence Hospital, part of St. Louis-based Ascension Health, is a 355-bed facility located about 15 miles northwest of Detroit that dates back to 1845. The hospital has set itself apart through its medical advancements, having been home to a handful of medical firsts, including the area's first FDA-approved brain stent procedure. Truven Health Analytics named Providence to its lists of 100 Top Hospitals and 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals in 2013.
Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center (Spokane, Wash.). Since the hospital admitted its first patient in 1887, Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center has grown to become one of the largest hospitals in the Northwest, totaling 644 beds and including more than 800 specialists and primary care physicians. Providence Sacred Heart includes Sacred Children's Hospital, which provides care for tinier patients in more than 28 pediatric subspecialties. The hospital has been a pioneer for robotic surgery, offering a range of procedures with robotics performed in a hybrid operating room. In 2012, the hospital received HealthGrades' Patient Safety Excellence Award and also boosted its clinical presence by expanding its emergency department and family maternity center.
Rex Hospital (Raleigh, N.C.). Rex Hospital is the flagship for Rex Healthcare, part of Chapel Hill, N.C.-based UNC Health Care. Rex, which dates back to 1894, was named to HealthGrades' list of America's 50 Best Hospitals in 2013, meaning it falls within the top 1 percent of hospitals in the nation. Rex has pioneered several medical programs in the greater Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill region and North Carolina, such as establishing the first bariatric center of excellence and becoming the first hospital to complete 2,000 robotic procedures.
Robert Packer Hospital (Sayre, Pa.). Robert Packer Hospital is a 238-bed tertiary care facility that serves patients in the southern area of New York and northern tier of Pennsylvania. Part of Sayre-based Guthrie Health System and affiliated with the 260-physician Guthrie Clinic, Robert Packer was named to Thomson Reuters' list of 100 Top Hospitals in 2012, its sixth consecutive year receiving the recognition. Last summer, the hospital's cancer program also received a three-year accreditation by the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer.
Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center (Los Angeles). Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center was founded in 1955 as the primary hospital for UCLA School of Medicine. It is home to numerous medical breakthroughs, such as the first shoulder replacement, which was performed at the hospital in 1976. Through its Operation Mend program, UCLA Medical Center gives returning military personnel with severe facial and other injuries access to the nation's top plastic and reconstructive surgeons, as well as comprehensive medical and mental health support. The hospital is the preferred medical provider for the Los Angeles Lakers, and U.S. News & World Report ranked it as one of the top five hospitals in the nation in its 2012-13 rankings.
Rush University Medical Center (Chicago). Rush University Medical Center is a staple to Chicago's healthcare landscape, as Rush Medical College was founded two years before the city was even incorporated in 1839. Rush was the first hospital in Illinois serving adults and children to receive Magnet status for nursing excellence. The hospital is well recognized for its orthopedics program, which U.S. News & World Report ranked 11th out of roughly 5,000 hospitals in the country. Rush is also the preferred medical center for the Chicago Bulls, and Rush orthopedic surgeon Brian Cole, MD, performed ACL repair surgery on point guard Derrick Rose this past May.
Saint Thomas Hospital (Nashville, Tenn.). Saint Thomas Hospital was founded in 1898 when Nashville Catholic Bishop Thomas Sebastian Byrne asked the Daughters of Charity to establish a hospital within the city. Saint Thomas, a 541-bed hospital, was named to 100 Top Hospitals by Truven Health Analytics for the 12th time in 2013. In February, the hospital opened an epilepsy unit to help physicians better identify the types of seizures patients experience through electroencephalography, which measures brain waves.
Sarasota (Fla.) Memorial Hospital. Sarasota Memorial Health Care System is an 806-bed, county-owned regional medical center that opened in 1925 after residents of Sarasota raised $40,000 to build the facility due to the growing need for organized healthcare. Demand for the hospital was so great, there is a legend that Sarasota businessmen wouldn't walk down the town's main street without pulling their pockets inside-out to prove they had no more money to donate toward the cause. Sarasota Memorial is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence and is the only hospital in southwest Florida named to HealthGrades' America’s 50 Best Hospitals list, meaning it is in the nation's top 1 percent of hospitals for consistent clinical excellence.
Schneck Medical Center (Seymour, Ind.). Schneck Medical Center opened in 1911 after Mary Schneck donated $5,000 to build a hospital in memory of her late husband Louis, a pioneer industrialist. This 114-bed, government-owned hospital includes a 125-member medical staff and an array of healthcare services, with concentration on comprehensive women's healthcare. It is Magnet-designated for nursing excellence and is a past recipient of the Malcolm Baldrige Quality Award for performance excellence.
Scripps Green Hospital (La Jolla, Calif.). Since it was founded in 1977, Scripps Green Hospital has been home to several medical breakthroughs for the La Jolla and greater San Diego area, such as the first liver transplant program. The hospital continues to serve as a vanguard in healthcare, sharing its campus with Scripps Center for Integrative Medicine, which blends conventional Western medicine with more holistic therapies for a "best of both worlds" approach to care. The 173-bed hospital was named to Truven Health Analytics' 100 Top Hospitals in 2013.
Spectrum Health Butterworth Hospital (Grand Rapids, Mich.). Spectrum Health Medical Center, founded in 1873, is a teaching hospital with ties to Michigan State University College of Human Medicine. The hospital is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence and serves as an anchor for healthcare in its community. More than 8,000 babies are delivered at the hospital each year. In 2012, Leapfrog Group named Spectrum Butterworth one of its Top Urban Hospitals, and U.S. News & World Report also ranked it as one of the top in the nation for gynecology, and diabetes and endocrinology in its 2012-13 rankings.
St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital (Houston). St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital, which opened in 1954, is a 695-bed teaching hospital with ties to Baylor College of Medicine and The University of Texas Medical School at Houston. U.S. News & World Report has ranked the hospital nationally for 10 specialties and the hospital is also Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence. The Lung Transplant Program at St. Luke's Cooley Transplant Center first began performing lung and heart-lung transplants in 1994, and the hospital recently celebrated its 20th lung transplant since reactivating the program in February 2012.
St. Luke's Hospital (Cedar Rapids, Iowa). St. Luke's Hospital is a 532-bed facility and part of Cedar Rapids-based Iowa Health System. St. Luke's was named as one of the 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals by Truven Health Analytics in 2012-13, and it is one of only 41 hospitals in the country to have been named a 100 Top Hospital by Truven Health Analytics five times, most recently in 2012-13. The hospital, which is Magnet-designated for nursing excellence, is a pioneer in value-based healthcare delivery: St. Luke's is part of two accountable care organizations.
St. Vincent Indianapolis Hospital. St. Vincent Indianapolis Hospital is part of Indianapolis-based St. Vincent Health, which was named one of the 15 Top Health Systems in 2012 by Thomson Reuters. St. Vincent Indianapolis, a 584-bed hospital, is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence and was recognized by HealthGrades in 2012 as a Distinguished Hospital for Clinical Excellence. Recently, St.Vincent participated in a landmark study to evaluate the clinical evidence for safety and efficacy of ultrasound energy used with medicine to target t blood clots when treating patients with life-threatening pulmonary embolism.
Stanford Hospital & Clinics (Palo Alto, Calif.). Stanford is a 613-bed hospital with six centers of excellence. It is especially renowned for its cardiac and cancer care, along with neurology, neurosurgery, orthopedics and organ transplants. U.S. News & World Report ranked Stanford within the top 20 hospitals in the nation for its cancer and ear, nose and throat programs in 2012-13. In November 2012, Stanford became the first hospital in the country to meet The Joint Commission's standards for Disease-Specific Care Comprehensive Stroke Center Certification. It recently unveiled plans for a new outpatient cancer center in San Jose, Calif., which is expected to open in 2014.
Thomas Jefferson University Hospital (Philadelphia). Thomas Jefferson University Hospital is a 969-bed academic medical center that was founded in 1825. The hospital has received a medley of awards throughout its history, but most recently, U.S. News & World Report ranked Thomas Jefferson as the seventh best hospital in the country for orthopedics. The hospital, which is Magnet-designated for nursing excellence, was also recently accredited by the National Committee for Quality Assurance as a patient-centered medical home.
Tri-City Medical Center (Oceanside, Calif.). Tri-City Medical Center, located about 40 miles north of San Diego, opened its doors in 1961 with 42 physicians on staff. It has only grown since: Today, the 397-bed hospital includes more than 500 physicians. Tri-City continually promotes the value of innovation in healthcare services. For instance, this past summer, a Tri-City orthopedic surgeon performed the first vitamin E total knee replacement in San Diego county. Tri-City is also adapting to new delivery models. The hospital's accountable care organization, North Coast Medical ACO, was the only one in San Diego chosen to participate in the Medicare Shared Savings ACO program in the summer of 2012.
Trinity Rock Island (Ill.). Part of Des Moines-based Iowa Health System, Trinity Rock Island is a 504-bed entity comprised of four hospitals, 338-bed Trinity Rock Island being the most robust with the largest inpatient capacity. Magnet-designated for nursing excellence, Trinity Rock Island has received designations from Blue Cross Blue Shield as a Blue Distinction Center+ for knee and hip replacements. HealthGrades also named Trinity Rock Island as one of its 100 Best Hospitals for Cardiac Care and Coronary Interventional Procedures in 2013.
UAB Hospital (Birmingham, Ala.). With 1,046 beds and more than 900 physicians, UAB Hospital is a healthcare giant for the Birmingham area, and one of the four largest academic medical centers in the country. The hospital was established in 1945 as the teaching hospital for the University of Alabama School of Medicine, and since then, UAB has helped lead the way for healthcare in Alabama. It includes the only Level I trauma center in the state, was the first hospital to receive Magnet accreditation for nursing excellence in the state, and is the only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center located in a six-state area.
UC San Diego Medical Center. UC San Diego Medical Center is a staple in its local healthcare landscape, being the only academic medical center in the city and also the top-ranked hospital in San Diego, according to U.S. News & World Report's 2012-13 rankings. In February, UC San Diego's Napoleone Ferrara, MD, PhD, the molecular biologist credited with helping decipher how tumors grow, received the $3 million Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences for his work. UC San Diego was one of the 100 Top Hospitals named by Truven Health Analytics in 2012-13, and its affiliated cardiovascular center was also one of Truven's 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals.
UCSF Medical Center (San Francisco). UCSF Medical Center has a robust reputation for medical care and research, as evidenced by its receiving a $20 million gift for neuroscience research and a $36 million grant for its Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center in 2012. The hospital is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence and was named the 13th best hospital in the nation by U.S. News & World Report in its 2012-13 rankings. UCSF's Medical Center at Mission Bay is poised to be a major medical hub, as it will include three hospitals — children's, women's specialty and cancer. It is slated to open in February 2015.
University Hospital (Salt Lake City). University Hospital opened in 1965 and has since grown to include more than 1,000 University of Utah physicians trained in 200 medical specialties. As one of the few academic medical centers in the Intermountain West area, the hospital continues to expand its presence in and around Salt Lake City, having opened its multispecialty center in January 2012, its $200 million patient care pavilion three years prior, and a health and wellness center in 2008. HealthGrades ranked University Hospital as the best in the Salt Lake City region in 2012 based on overall patient experience.
University Medical Center at Princeton at Plainsboro (N.J.). University Medical Center at Princeton straddles the old and the new. The hospital dates back to 1919, but just opened a new $447-million, state-of-the-art hospital campus in May 2012, featuring 231 single-patient rooms and an array of other contemporary amenities. University Medical Center at Princeton operates around 10 central centers for care, including centers for cancer, eating disorders, and neuroscience. The hospital received Magnet-accreditation for nursing excellence in November. It is partnered with The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia for enhanced pediatric services, and Penn Medicine for its Penn Maternal Fetal Medicine at University Medical Center at Princeton program.
University of Chicago Medical Center. University of Chicago Medical Center opened its doors to patients in 1927. Throughout its history, hospital parent University of Chicago Medicine has been affiliated with 12 winners of the Nobel Prize. Magnet-accredited by the American Nurse Credentialing Center, the University of Chicago Medical Center's cancer program was ranked 15th in the country by U.S. News & World Report in 2012-13. The medical center is one of the largest providers of uncompensated care in Illinois, providing millions of dollars in unreimbursed care every year. In February, University of Chicago Medicine opened its Center for Care a Discovery, a 10-story "hospital for the future" featuring a novel, patient-centered design for more seamless care delivery.
University of Colorado Hospital (Aurora). University of Colorado Hospital dates back to 1921 when it was founded as part of the University of Colorado medical campus, and the hospital still shares its campus with the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine to this day. University of Colorado Hospital is Magnet-designated for nursing excellence, and its cancer center has received National Cancer Institute-accreditation as a comprehensive cancer center four times, most recently in August 2012. University HealthSystem Consortium named University of Colorado Hospital as the highest-performing academic hospital in the United States for delivering quality health care in September 2012, the second consecutive year it earned such recognition.
University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics (Iowa City). University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics is a 711-bed hospital, including a 190-bed children's hospital, that includes more than 1,545 physicians. UI Hospitals and Clinics was the first in the state to receive Magnet-accreditation for nursing excellence. The hospital, which is part of an accountable care organization, was ranked the number one hospital in the state by U.S. News & World Report in 2012-13. In October 2012, it expanded its clinical reach with the opening of its new $73 million ambulatory care clinic in Coralville, Iowa.
University of Maryland Medical Center (Baltimore). Dating back to 1823, the 675-bed University of Maryland Medical Center is one of the country's first teaching hospitals. The hospital is backed by approximately 1,135 physicians, all of whom are on the faculty of the University of Maryland School of Medicine. The hospital is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence and was named one of the best hospitals in the country for patient safety and quality of care by Leapfrog Group in 2012, the seventh consecutive year the hospital received such distinction. In March 2012, physicians at the hospital performed the most extensive full-face transplant to date for a patient who lost most of his face in a gun accident. Following the procedure, the 37-year-old patient returned to his normal life after he had avoided people for 15 years.
University of Michigan Medical Center. The flagship of University of Michigan Health System, U-M Medical Center includes C.S. Mott's Children's Hospital, a comprehensive cancer center, a neuroscience center, cardiovascular center and women's hospital. The organization is a pioneer in value-based care delivery and was one of the first hospitals to be part of the CMS' Pioneer Accountable Care Organization program. U.S. News & World Report has ranked U-M Hospitals as one of its 17 Honor Roll hospitals, which scored at or near the top of their "class" for at least six of 16 medical specialties. Truven Health Analytics also awarded U-M Health System the Everest Award in 2013, an honor bestowed to only 17 hospitals across the country for improving performance measures on patient safety, quality and financial stability.
University of Washington Medical Center (Seattle). University of Washington Medical Center is a 450-bed hospital that opened as one of the country's smallest teaching hospitals in 1959. The hospital has rocketed from those humble beginnings and pioneered several medical findings, such as a World Health Organization pilot that linked surgical checklists to decreased medical complications. The hospital is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence, and U.S. News & World Report ranked it first in the Seattle metropolitan area in 2012-13.
UPMC Presbyterian (Pittsburgh). Founded in 1893, the robust UPMC Presbyterian is a mainstay in the American healthcare landscape. U.S. News & World Report ranked the hospital first in the state and 10th out of nearly 5,000 hospitals in the country in its 2012-13 rankings. UPMC's heart and lung transplant program is one of the most experienced in the world, with more than 1,300 adult cardiac transplants and 1,600 adult lung or heart-lung transplants performed. In March, UPMC surgeons performed the first breathing lung transplant on the East Coast, in which a machine kept oxygen pumping through the organ before it was transplanted in the patient.
Vanderbilt University Medical Center (Nashville, Tenn.). Vanderbilt University Medical Center is home to much-needed programs in the Nashville area, such as the only comprehensive heart transplant program and dedicated burn center in the region. The 584-bed hospital is a leader in both medical treatment and research, as it hosts numerous clinical trials, including a recent one in which Vanderbilt researchers are testing a drug to shrink melanoma tumors. In 2012-13, U.S. News & World Report ranked Vanderbilt the number one hospital in Tennessee.
Yale-New Haven (Conn.) Hospital. Yale-New Haven Hospital is a 1,541-bed teaching hospital affiliated with Yale Schools of Medicine and Nursing. The hospital is home to a range of medical breakthroughs, ranging from the first successful use of penicillin in 1946 to the first bronchial thermoplasty procedure performed in Connecticut in 2011. The hospital, which is Magnet-designated for nursing excellence, was ranked first in the state by U.S. News & World Report and as high-ranking in 10 adult specialties in 2012-13.
To develop this list, the Becker's Hospital Review editorial team accepted nominations, conducted research and considered other reputable hospital ranking sources such as U.S. News & World Report, Truven Health Analytics' 100 Top Hospitals, HealthGrades, Magnet Recognition by the American Nurses Credentialing Center, the Studer Group and Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award recipients.
Editor's note: This list is not a ranking, and hospitals are displayed in alphabetical order. This list is not an endorsement of included hospitals or associated healthcare providers, and hospitals cannot pay to be included on this list.
Abbott Northwestern Hospital (Minneapolis). What started as a small rented house more than 130 years ago eventually became the Abbott Northwestern Hospital of today. Forty-four women founded Abbott Northwestern in 1882 as the Northwestern Hospital for Women and Children, which is now the 627-bed flagship of Minneapolis-based Allina Health. The Minneapolis Heart Institute at Abbott Northwestern delivers care through its integrated cardiovascular care model, which combines clinical research, scientific innovation and medical services.
Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital (Downers Grove, Ill.). The 340-bed Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital, part of Advocate Health Care, the largest health system in Illinois, has more than 950 physicians across 59 specialties. It is the only Level I trauma center in DuPage County, and it was the 2010 recipient of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award for healthcare excellence. Advocate Good Samaritan was also named as one of the top 100 hospitals in the country for 2013 by both Truven Health Analytics and HealthGrades.
Aultman Hospital (Canton, Ohio). Aultman Hospital officially opened its doors in 1892 after the daughter of local banker Cornelius Aultman and her stepmother deeded 4.5 acres of land to the Aultman Hospital Association. The 808-bed, Magnet-designated hospital is now a regional healthcare leader, as HealthGrades named it as one of its top 100 hospitals for 2013. Within Aultman is the largest hospital/physician-based PPO in northeastern Ohio, AultCare, which covers more than 530,000 people. Aultman has outlined a "2020 Health Vision," with a goal of making its county healthier by 2020 through the promotion of better health behaviors and improved social and economic factors.
Aurora BayCare Medical Center (Green Bay, Wis.). Since September 2001, Aurora BayCare Medical Center has served the Green Bay community with high-quality healthcare through physician-led decision making. The 167-bed Aurora BayCare, a joint venture between Milwaukee-based Aurora Health Care and Green Bay-based BayCare Clinic, is one of the largest physician-owned hospitals in Wisconsin. Since 2010, Aurora BayCare has received 18 different HealthGrades awards, including the Distinguished Hospital Award for Clinical Excellence for the past two years.
Avera McKennan Hospital & University Health Center (Sioux Falls, S.D.). With 545 beds, Avera McKennan Hospital & University Health Center is one of the largest hospitals and tertiary centers in South Dakota. Included within Avera McKennan is a 55-bed heart hospital, as well as the Avera Children's Hospital & Clinics. The original hospital, McKennan Hospital, opened in 1911 with 55 patient beds and living spaces for 20 nurses and nuns. This year, Avera McKennan was named to 100 Top Hospitals by Truven Health Analytics and was ranked as the top hospital in South Dakota by U.S. News & World Report.
Barnes-Jewish Hospital (St. Louis). Barnes-Jewish Hospital, the result of a 1996 merger between Barnes Hospital and The Jewish Hospital of St. Louis, is licensed for 1,158 beds, according to its fiscal year 2011 figures. The teaching hospital is affiliated with Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, and it is the flagship institution of BJC HealthCare. Barnes-Jewish is the recipient of numerous awards and home to dozens of medical breakthroughs, including the first U.S. surgery that relocated a salivary gland to restore moisture to a tear duct, which has since saved or recovered the eyesight of patients. This year, the Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital opened a new $27.5 million outpatient facility in south St. Louis County.
Baylor University Medical Center (Dallas). In 1903, Baylor University Medical Center — then known as Texas Baptist Memorial Sanitarium — began serving Dallas-area patients in a 14-room renovated house. Today, the academic medical center has 1,065 licensed beds through six connected facilities, 5,500 employees and more than 1,000 physicians. In its most recent rankings, U.S. News & World Report graded Baylor, the flagship of Dallas-based Baylor Health Care System, as a nationally ranked institution for gastroenterology, nephrology, orthopedics, pulmonology, urology and gynecology. In early 2012, Baylor opened its $125 million Baylor Cancer Hospital, the first dedicated cancer hospital in the region.
Baystate Medical Center (Springfield, Mass.). Baystate Medical Center, a 716-bed teaching hospital and affiliate of Tufts University School of Medicine, made headlines in 2012 after it completed construction on its new 600,000-square-foot "Hospital of the Future." The Magnet-designated hospital has the second-busiest emergency department in Massachusetts and is the only Level I trauma center in the western part of the state. Baystate, which was named to 100 Top Hospitals by Truven Health Analytics this year, also recently opened a new $45 million emergency and trauma center.
Beaumont Hospital (Troy, Mich.). Beaumont Health System has three distinguished hospitals within its network, and its Troy campus has become a leading, high-volume community hospital. Beaumont Hospital in Troy has 418 beds, and in 2012, it recorded nearly 30,000 patient admissions, 18,000 surgeries and 80,000 emergency department visits. The Magnet-designated hospital has received numerous awards from HealthGrades over the past three years, and Truven Health Analytics named the Troy campus to its 100 Top Hospitals this year. This past December, Beaumont Health System and Henry Ford Health System in Detroit formed a task force to complete their merger, which was announced in October.
Bethesda North Hospital (Cincinnati). Bethesda North Hospital opened in 1970 as a satellite campus to Bethesda Oak, which was a hospital that operated for more than 100 years before closing in 2000. In 1995, Bethesda North merged with Good Samaritan Hospital to form TriHealth, the non-profit parent organization. The 375-bed hospital has earned numerous awards throughout its history, including a spot on Truven Health Analytics' 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals this year. It was also only one of two hospitals in the Cincinnati area to make HealthGrades' 100 best hospitals report for 2013.
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (Boston). The Boston landscape is filled with renowned hospitals and academic medical centers, and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center fits the mold. The 649-bed teaching hospital, an affiliate of Harvard Medical School, has 1,250 physicians on its active medical staff. It also contains the oldest clinical research laboratory in the country, the Harvard-Thorndike Laboratory. Beth Israel Deaconess, which opened its doors in 1896 as a 14-bed infirmary, was also the only Boston-based teaching hospital to make Truven Health Analytics' 100 Top Hospitals list this year. In 2012, the hospital recorded nearly 51,000 inpatient discharges and 550,000 outpatient visits.
Billings (Mont.) Clinic Hospital. The largest employer in the Billings community, Billings Clinic's downtown campus includes the 272-bed Billings Clinic Hospital, a surgery center and the region's largest multispecialty group practice with 46 physician specialties. The hospital is the only Magnet-designated healthcare organization in Montana, and Truven Health Analytics named the facility to its 100 Top Hospitals for 2013. In January, Billings Clinic was selected as a member of the Mayo Clinic Care Network, which allows organizations to share expertise and best practices to improve healthcare quality and delivery.
Bon Secours Memorial Regional Medical Center (Mechanicsville, Va.). Since 2010, the 225-bed Bon Secours Memorial Regional Medical Center has garnered nearly two dozen individual awards from HealthGrades, ranging from outstanding patient experience to stroke care excellence to overall clinical excellence. Memorial Regional has more than 1,000 physicians and 3,000 full- and part-time employees. The hospital, which opened in 1998, also has a cancer institute, heart and vascular institute, orthopedic institute and ambulatory surgery center, making it one of the most comprehensive providers in the northwest suburb of Richmond.
Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital (Charleston, S.C.). Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital's roots date back to 1882. Five members of the Sisters of Charity of Our Lady of Mercy opened the hospital in a small building in downtown Charleston, making it the first Catholic-based hospital in South Carolina. The 204-bed hospital, part of Roper St. Francis Healthcare, has received several accolades over the past year from Truven Health Analytics, HealthGrades, CareChex and others, and U.S. News & World Report also ranked the hospital as high-performing in four adult specialties.
Brigham and Women's Hospital (Boston). With its history dating back more than 180 years, Brigham and Women's Hospital is home to many medical firsts, such as the world's first successful human organ transplant and the country's first triple-organ transplant. This year, U.S. News & World Report ranked the 793-bed Brigham and Women's among the 50 best hospitals in the nation for 13 different adult specialties, including second-best in gynecology. Elizabeth Nabel, MD, former director of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute at the National Institutes of Health, has served as president of Brigham and Women's since January 2010.
Bronson Methodist Hospital (Kalamazoo, Mich.). Bronson Methodist Hospital, a 404-bed facility and the flagship of Bronson Healthcare Group, was ranked as one of the top hospitals in southwestern Michigan this past year, according to U.S. News & World Report. A former Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award recipient, Bronson Methodist provided nearly $55 million in community benefit in 2010, which included charity care and other subsidized healthcare services. The Environmental Protection Agency, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, HealthGrades and Practice Greenhealth have also touted the hospital's achievements.
Carolinas Medical Center-Mercy (Charlotte, N.C.). In 1906, the Sisters of Mercy founded Carolinas Medical Center-Mercy as the first Catholic hospital in North Carolina. In 1995, the 196-bed hospital became part of Charlotte, N.C.-based Carolinas HealthCare System, and today it provides a full spectrum of services, including cardiac care, sleep services, emergency services and orthopedics. Truven Health Analytics named Carolinas Medical Center-Mercy as one of its 100 Top Hospitals in 2013, the first time the hospital has received the award.
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center (Los Angeles). Cedars-Sinai Medical Center started as a 12-bed facility in 1902, then known as Kaspare Cohn Hospital. Now the non-profit academic medical center has nearly 900 beds, more than 2,000 physicians in every medical specialty and 10,000 total employees. Cedars-Sinai is consistently ranked among the best hospitals along the West Coast and in the country by U.S. News & World Report. In addition, for more than 20 years, Cedars-Sinai has ranked first in health quality, physician quality, nursing quality and other categories by National Research Corp. Since 2011, Cedars-Sinai has collaborated with health insurer WellPoint to develop clinical decision support solutions with IBM's Watson technology.
Central DuPage Hospital (Winfield, Ill.). Central DuPage Hospital opened its doors in 1964 as a 113-bed hospital, but its roots date back to 1908, when the Chicago-Winfield Tuberculosis Sanatorium operated by what is now Central DuPage's main entrance. Today, Central DuPage has 313 beds, a medical staff of more than 900 physicians and a Magnet-designated nursing staff. The hospital — ranked among the 100 best in the country by Truven Health Analytics and a top orthopedic hospital as ranked by U.S. News & World Report in 2013 — recently passed its two-year anniversary as the flagship hospital of Cadence Health, which was the result of a merger between Central DuPage Health System and Delnor Community Health System in Geneva, Ill.
Chesterfield General Hospital (Cheraw, S.C.). Chesterfield General Hospital, a 59-bed hospital and sole provider within Chesterfield County, is based in the historic, rural community of Cheraw, which has a population of roughly 9,000. The hospital offers a wide array of specialties, including a new cardiology service line and bariatric center. Chesterfield General, which has 250 employees and is part of Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems, recently was named a top 10 CHS hospital for high scores in two major indicators of the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems.
The Christ Hospital (Cincinnati). For almost 125 years, The Christ Hospital has served the greater Cincinnati area. It was founded in 1889 by a missionary named Isabella Thoburn, who opened the facility with 10 beds. The Christ Hospital currently has 555 beds and roughly 4,000 employees. For its 2012-13 rankings, U.S. News & World Report pegged the hospital as number one in the Cincinnati metropolitan area. The hospital was also ranked nationally ranked for diabetes/endocrinology and orthopedics. Earlier this year, The Christ Hospital's physician group acquired two physician practices, one centered on spine surgery and the other around otolaryngology.
Christiana Hospital (Newark, Del.). Christiana Hospital, a 913-bed teaching facility and the flagship of Christiana Care Health System, is the largest hospital in Delaware and one of the busiest hospitals in the country. The hospital, along with its other campuses, is among the top 35, by volume, for admissions, births, emergency department visits and total surgeries. Christiana Hospital is the only Level I trauma center between Baltimore and Philadelphia and the only delivering hospital in Delaware with a Level III neonatal intensive care unit. U.S. News & World Report ranked Christiana Hospital 45th in the country last year for gastroenterology.
Cleveland Clinic. Few healthcare organizations compare to Cleveland Clinic, a 1,400-bed academic medical center in the heart of Ohio's second-largest city. Four physicians built the hospital in 1921 after they were impressed with the military's efficient medicine practices during World War I. This past year, U.S. News & World Report ranked Cleveland Clinic as the best hospital in Ohio, the fourth-best hospital in the country and the top overall hospital for cardiology and nephrology. This year, Cleveland Clinic announced a groundbreaking strategic alliance with for-profit Community Health Systems, based in Franklin, Tenn. Cleveland Clinic will help CHS with several quality efforts, including physician best practices, heart care and telehealth.
Duke University Hospital (Durham, N.C.). Duke University Hospital's roots trace back to 1930, when the hospital opened after three years of construction. James B. Duke established The Duke Endowment, which created the Duke School of Medicine and Duke University Hospital. The 924-bed academic medical center has been the site of several medical accomplishments, including the creation of the nation's first brain tumor program and development of the nation's first outpatient bone marrow transplant program. U.S. News & World Report ranked Duke University Hospital as the top hospital in North Carolina and eighth-best in the country in 2013.
Emory University Hospital (Atlanta). In 1904, Emory University Hospital — then Wesley Memorial Hospital — was chartered with 50 beds. Nearly 110 years later, Emory is a 579-bed academic medical center with ties to the Emory University School of Medicine. U.S. News & World Report ranked Emory as one of the top hospitals in Georgia, and its renowned specialties have supported its accolades. It is the only multiple-organ transplant center in Georgia, and Emory physicians have pioneered several medical procedures, including angioplasty, corneal transplants and microelectrode-guided pallidotomy for the treatment of Parkinson's disease.
Evanston (Ill.) Hospital. Evanston Hospital, the flagship of NorthShore University HealthSystem, opened in 1891. The 743-bed hospital is a teaching affiliate of the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine and provides some of the most specialized care in the Chicagoland area. This year, Truven Health Analytics named Evanston as one of its 100 Top Hospitals. In September, Evanston and NorthShore announced they were joining the Mayo Clinic Care Network to provide patients with access to medical resources and expertise from both systems.
Florida Hospital (Orlando). Florida Hospital, the flagship of Altamonte Springs, Fla.-based Adventist Health System, is one of the largest and busiest hospitals in the country. Florida Hospital has more than 2,200 beds, treats more patients than any other hospital in the United States and has the largest family medicine residency in Florida. Earlier this year, it broke ground on a $210 million women's hospital, which is scheduled to open in 2015. Florida Hospital is nationally ranked in seven adult specialties, including gynecology, cardiology and urology, according to U.S. News & World Report's most recent rankings.
Froedtert Hospital (Milwaukee). Froedtert Hospital and The Medical College of Wisconsin comprise a 500-bed academic medical center — the only one in eastern Wisconsin. It has more than 5,000 employees and had more than 27,000 admissions in its most recent fiscal year. Together, Froedtert & The Medical College of Wisconsin have been home to several medical firsts. Froedtert was one of the first hospitals in the country to offer intra-arterial chemotherapy for head and neck tumors, for instance. The Magnet-designated hospital has collected several awards over the years, and for 2012-13, U.S. News & World Report ranked Froedtert as the top hospital in the Milwaukee metropolitan area and ranked it nationally in four adult specialties.
Gaston Memorial Hospital (Gastonia, N.C.). The 435-bed Gaston Memorial Hospital was founded in 1946 following World War II. In 1973, Gaston Memorial established its school of nursing, and that same year, it relocated to its current site. Today, it is the flagship facility of CaroMont Health and houses several of CaroMont's signature centers of excellence, including the CaroMont Cancer Center and CaroMont Diabetes Center. The Magnet-designated facility has received several accolades from CareChex, Premier and HealthGrades. It also was named to 100 Top Hospitals by Truven Health Analytics in 2013.
Geisinger Medical Center (Danville, Pa.). Founded in 1915, the 545-bed Geisinger Medical Center has become a pillar in American healthcare. The hospital is part of Geisinger Health System, the integrated delivery system hailed by President Barack Obama for its low costs and high-quality care. The system was also named to Truven Health Analytics' list of 15 Top Health Systems in 2013. Geisinger Medical Center, which is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence, includes a Level I trauma center and offers patients access to clinical trials. Last fall, the hospital partnered with Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania to provide bachelor's and master's degree programs in nursing, beginning in fall 2013.
Grant Medical Center (Columbus, Ohio). Grant Medical Center, founded in 1900, is one of eight hospitals within the OhioHealth system. With 640 beds and a Level I trauma center, this teaching hospital's physicians perform more than 20,000 surgeries every year. Grant Medical Center is Magnet-designated for nursing excellence. For 2012-13, U.S. News & World Report ranked Grant Medical Center 49th in the country for both gastroenterology and pulmonology, and as a high-performing hospital in 10 other specialties.
Gundersen Lutheran Medical Center (La Crosse, Wis.). The 325-bed Gundersen Lutheran Medical Center is the nucleus of Gundersen Lutheran Health System, which currently has a strategic plan to be 100-percent energy independent by 2014. The hospital formed from the merger between Gundersen Clinic and Lutheran Hospital-La Crosse in 1995. Since 2010, Gundersen Lutheran has garnered 50 awards from HealthGrades, ranging from general surgery excellence to cardiac care excellence. This year, Gundersen Lutheran formed a partnership with a physician group to enhance cardiac services at Allen Hospital in Waterloo, Iowa.
Hackensack (N.J.) University Medical Center. When Hackensack University Medical Center was founded in 1888 with 12 beds, it was the first hospital in Bergen County. Ranked as the top hospital in New Jersey by U.S. News & World Report, the medical center is nationally recognized in eight adult specialties and one pediatric specialty. Hackensack was one of the many hospitals along the East Coast to feel the sting of Superstorm Sandy this past fall. It deployed a mobile satellite emergency department, funded through a partnership with the U.S. Department of Defense, to help patients in need.
Henrico Doctors' Hospital (Richmond, Va.). With 767 licensed beds, Henrico Doctors' Hospital is one of the biggest within the seven-hospital HCA Virginia. For three straight years, HealthGrades has named Henrico as one of America's 50 Best Hospitals, and in 2013, Henrico also captured HealthGrades excellence awards in joint replacement, orthopedic surgery, pulmonary care and stroke care. Last year, Henrico opened an $11.2 million freestanding emergency room, and it also plans to build a 97-bed hospital near the ER.
Henry Ford Hospital (Detroit). Henry Ford Hospital is an 802-bed tertiary care hospital and flagship facility of Henry Ford Health System. It has been a bastion for Michigan healthcare for roughly 100 years, earning accolades across most of its specialties. Henry Ford Hospital treats more cancer patients than any other hospital in Michigan, and it was the first hospital in Michigan to perform a new catheter-based procedure to treat structural heart disease. If the proposed merger between Henry Ford Health System and Royal Oak, Mich.-based Beaumont Health System is approved, Henry Ford Hospital would be the second-largest hospital within the new system.
Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian (Newport Beach, Calif.). Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian has been serving patients in Orange County since 1952, and the 579-bed hospital is ranked 43rd in the country for orthopedics, according to last year's rankings from U.S. News & World Report. Hoag is part of a commercial accountable care organization with Greater Newport Physicians Medical Group and Blue Shield of California. In February, Hoag announced it and Orange, Calif.-based St. Joseph Health completed an affiliation and will now operate under a new parent organization, Covenant Health Network.
Hospital for Special Surgery (New York City). The 205-bed Hospital for Special Surgery opened its doors in 1863, making it the oldest orthopedic hospital in the United States. For 22 straight years, U.S. News & World Report has ranked the hospital among the best in the country for orthopedics and rheumatology, and it's also nationally recognized for neurology and neurosurgery. Hospital for Special Surgery has 286 active medical staff members, who are the official team physicians for five professional sports teams. It is also a hub for major research, as the National Institutes of Health currently provides the hospital with $48.1 million in funding for 48 different studies.
Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia). Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania is one of the oldest and most prestigious academic medical centers in the country. The 784-bed hospital was founded in 1765 within Penn Medicine, and it currently has roughly 2,000 physicians on its staff. U.S. News & World Report ranked the hospital nationally in 13 adult specialties, with otolaryngology and urology as its highest-rated services. Last summer, CMS chose Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania as one of five hospitals for its Graduate Nurse Education Demonstration, which focuses on clinically training advanced practice registered nursing students.
Indiana University Health Methodist Hospital (Indianapolis). Ranked as an Honor Roll hospital by U.S. News & World Report in 2013, Indiana University Health Methodist Hospital is the flagship facility of the 16-hospital IU Health — the largest health system in the state. The Magnet hospital has won several Beacon Awards and accolades from the University HealthSystem Consortium for its clinical outcomes. This year, IU Health Methodist's orthopedics program affiliated with the Indiana Hand to Shoulder Center, one of the largest, freestanding hand surgery facilities in the world.
Inova Fair Oaks Hospital (Fairfax, Va.). The 182-bed Inova Fair Oaks Hospital has several signature service lines, ranging from the Inova Spine Program to its minimally invasive gynecology center of excellence. For 2012-13, the hospital was ranked among the best in northern Virginia by U.S. News & World Report, and Truven Health Analytics also named Inova Fair Oaks to its 100 Top Hospitals list. Last year, Inova Fair Oaks broke ground on a $31 million medical office building that will include a new radiation oncology cancer center. It is expected to open in early 2014.
John Muir Medical Center (Walnut Creek, Calif.). John Muir Medical Center, a 572-bed facility, is the only trauma center within its county. For two straight years, HealthGrades has named the hospital as one of America's 100 Best Hospitals, and it has also received HealthGrades excellence awards for high quality in pulmonary care, neurosurgery and several other service lines. John Muir has also made news as of late, as it recently acquired a 49 percent interest in San Ramon (Calif.) Regional Medical Center in a joint venture with Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare. In 2011, the hospital opened its $612 million Tom and Billie Long Patient Care Tower.
The Johns Hopkins Hospital (Baltimore). The name Johns Hopkins has been synonymous with world-class healthcare since its founding in 1889. According to U.S. News & World Report's 2012-13 rankings, Johns Hopkins was nationally ranked in 16 adult specialties and 10 pediatric specialties — making it one of the best hospitals for more than a decade now. In addition to its numerous medical breakthroughs, research studies and clinical trials, Johns Hopkins revamped its campus last April with a new $1.1 billion facility. The project created the Sheikh Zayed Cardiovascular and Critical Care Tower and The Charlotte R. Bloomberg Children's Center. The 1.6 million-square-foot facility includes 560 private patient rooms, 33 operating rooms, and adult and pediatric emergency departments.
Kendall Regional Medical Center (Miami). Kendall Regional Medical Center is a 412-bed, full-service hospital and one of 15 hospitals within HCA East Florida. Kendall has developed several centers of excellence, including the Heart and Vascular Institute and the Orthopedic & Spine Institute. The hospital has received three dozen awards from HealthGrades since 2010, including being named one of America's 50 Best Hospitals for two straight years. Kendall has also been recognized for quality healthcare by The Leapfrog Group, Blue Cross Blue Shield and Truven Health Analytics.
Lankenau Medical Center (Wynnewood, Pa.). Lankenau Medical Center's history began in 1860, when it started as a 50-bed house known as the German Hospital of the City of Philadelphia. John Lankenau, a wealthy Philadelphia merchant and the hospital's namesake, served as the hospital's president from 1869 until his death in 1901. Today, the 353-bed Lankenau Medical Center is one of the premier academic medical centers in the Philadelphia area, as it is a high-performing hospital in seven specialties, according to U.S. News & World Report. It was named to Truven Health Analytics' 100 Top Hospitals and 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals lists, and the hospital also has received awards from The Society of Thoracic Surgeons, Blue Cross Blue Shield and other organizations.
LDS Hospital (Salt Lake City). LDS Hospital, part of Intermountain Healthcare, also based in Salt Lake City, is a 217-bed community hospital. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints established the hospital in 1905 and was largely funded by W. H. Groves, a dentist and member of the church who came to Utah from England. U.S. News & World Report ranked LDS Hospital as the top hospital in Utah this past year, and LDS Hospital is also ranked 29th in the country in gynecology. HealthGrades has also bestowed several awards to the hospital, including excellence in critical care, emergency medicine and joint replacement. In December, LDS Hospital became the first hospital in Utah to offer bronchial thermoplasty to patients with severe asthma.
Massachusetts General Hospital (Boston). Last year, Massachusetts General Hospital did something that hadn't occurred in 21 years — it displaced The Johns Hopkins Hospital as the top overall hospital in the United States, according to U.S. News & World Report. The 907-bed academic medical center, the third-oldest general hospital in the country, sits in the hospital capital of the world: Boston. Mass General is the oldest and original teaching hospital for the world-renowned Harvard Medical School, which has an annual research budget of more than $760 million. Last year, the hospital opened its new Angelman Syndrome Clinic — one of only two in the country — to treat patients with Angelman syndrome, a congenital disorder appearing in newborns and lasting through adulthood that is often associated with autism and causes severe neurological impairment.
Mayo Clinic (Rochester, Minn.). Ranked third overall among all hospitals in the country by U.S. News & World Report, Mayo Clinic has served patients for 150 years. It started as a private practice by William Worrall Mayo, MD, and later included his two sons. Now, roughly 55,000 physicians, nurses, scientists, students and allied health staff comprise the Mayo Clinic system throughout the Midwest, Arizona and Florida. This year, Mayo Clinic announced a $5 billion economic development initiative called Destination Medical Center to secure Minnesota's status as a global medical destination center. Mayo Clinic CEO John Noseworthy, MD, also said he wants to expand the Mayo Clinic Care Network nationally and internationally to reach 200 million people by 2020.
MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center (Baltimore). Baltimore is a haven for many renowned healthcare organizations, and MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center has become part of that niche. The Magnet-designated hospital is licensed for 376 beds, has 700 physicians on staff and recorded more than 114,000 emergency department visits in 2012, making it the busiest ED in Maryland. MedStar Franklin has received several accolades over the years, including awards from HealthGrades and Practice Greenhealth, and U.S. News & World Report said the hospital was a high-performing institution for cancer, neurosurgery and eight other specialties.
Memorial Hermann Memorial City Medical Center (Houston). Since 1971, Memorial Hermann Memorial City Medical Center has been a clinical hub within the Houston-based Memorial Hermann Health System. It has 426 licensed beds and encompasses the 33-story Memorial Hermann Tower, which includes Houston's first dedicated women's and children's facilities outside of the Texas Medical Center. Roughly 1,000 physicians staff Memorial Hermann Memorial City, and it is one of 55 hospitals in the country with the lowest 30-day readmission rates for pneumonia patients. This year, HealthGrades and Truven Health Analytics each recognized Memorial Hermann Memorial City as one of the 100 best hospitals in the country.
Mercy Medical Center (Cedar Rapids, Iowa). Mercy Medical Center in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, has one of the more unique histories. After the Sisters of Mercy opened a 15-bed house in 1900, the group realized it needed a bigger space. The Sisters turned to an unusual source for funding: the horse track. Two men who owned the racing rights at the county fair donated one day's racing receipts toward the proposed building. Today, the 314-bed hospital has received awards from HealthGrades, Truven Health Analytics, CareChex, WomenCertified and others. In January, the hospital launched a "first-in-nation" pharmaceutical oncology robot for compounding and dispensing injectable chemotherapy medications.
The Methodist Hospital (Houston). With 766 beds, The Methodist Hospital stands as the flagship hospital of The Methodist Hospital System and Texas Medical Center in Houston. It has been the site of several medical breakthroughs, including the world's first multiple-organ transplant in the 1960s and the development of a minimally invasive procedure to repair brain aneurysms. The Methodist Hospital has more than 1,800 affiliated physicians, and it holds academic affiliations with Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Baylor College of Medicine and several others. Last year, U.S. News & World Report ranked the hospital number one in Houston and nationally ranked 13 of its adult specialties.
Middlesex Hospital (Middletown, Conn.). Middlesex Hospital is a 156-bed facility that dates back to 1904. It was Connecticut's first and only hospital to receive Magnet designation for nursing excellence from the American Nurses Credentialing Center in 2001, and Middlesex was also one of the first hospitals in the state to formally share its quality performance measures with the public in 2004. Truven Health Analytics named Middlesex to its list of 100 Top Hospitals in 2013.
Mission Hospital (Asheville, N.C.). Mission Hospital is a non-profit, independent community hospital located roughly 120 miles west of Charlotte, N.C. The busiest surgical hospital in the state, Mission is anchored by seven centers of excellence and offers a range of other surgical and support services. It is partnered with UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center in Chapel Hill, N.C., for cancer care and was named to Truven Health Analytics' list of 100 Top Hospitals in 2013, its fifth year to receive such recognition since it was founded in 1996. Mission Health, the hospital's Asheville-based parent, was also named as one of the Top 15 Health Systems in the country by Truven in 2012.
Mount Sinai Hospital (New York City). Mount Sinai Hospital is a 1,171-bed hospital that dates back to 1852, when nine men agreed to carry out their vision for free medical care for New York City's Jewish population. Throughout its history, Mount Sinai has been home to a number of medical firsts and breakthroughs, including identifying the connection between the collapse of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, to first responders' risk for heart problems. U.S. News & World Report ranked Mount Sinai 14th on its elite Honor Roll of the nation's top hospitals in 2012. Mount Sinai has also made headlines recently, as it is exploring a merger with New York City-based Continuum Health Partners.
NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital (New York City). Founded in 1771, NewYork-Presbyterian is the second-oldest hospital in the country and America's largest non-profit, non-sectarian hospital, with 2,409 beds. The hospital's affiliations with Weill Cornell Medical College and Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York City drive groundbreaking research and medical treatments. This year, NewYork-Presbyterian and Weill Cornell launched the Institute for Precision Medicine, a research hub to explore personalized treatments based on patients' genetic profiles. NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital ranked first in New York and seventh in the country out of the approximately 5,000 hospitals evaluated by U.S. News & World Report in its 2012-13 rankings.
North Colorado Medical Center (Greeley). North Colorado Medical Center, founded in 1904, is a 378-bed hospital about 50 miles north of Denver. The hospital is part of Phoenix-based Banner Health, which was named to Truven Health Analytics' 15 Top Health Systems in 2013. North Colorado includes about 250 physicians and has been nationally recognized for its burn, trauma care and cardiac programs. In April 2012, the North Colorado Medical Center Breast Center was designated a Breast Imaging Center of Excellence by the American College of Radiology. The hospital was also named to HealthGrades' America's 100 Best Hospitals list in 2012 and Truven's list of 100 Top Hospitals in 2013.
Northeast Georgia Medical Center (Gainesville). Northeast Georgia Medical Center is a 435-bed, non-profit community hospital located about 55 miles northeast of Atlanta. The hospital offers a range of health services, but is especially renowned for its cardiology services and has received recognition from HealthGrades for its heart care. Recently, as part of a clinical trial, physicians at Northeast Georgia were the first in the nation to implant a new type of mesh tube during a heart bypass surgery, which could alter the way traditional bypasses have been performed since the late 1960s. Northeast Georgia was named to Truven Health Analytics' list of 100 Top Hospitals and HealthGrades' list of America's 50 Best Hospitals in 2013.
North Mississippi Medical Center (Tupelo). North Mississippi Medical Center is a non-profit, community-owned, 650-bed flagship hospital for North Mississippi Health Services, which was a 2012 recipient of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. The hospital is the largest, private non-profit hospital in Mississippi and the largest non-metropolitan hospital in the country, serving people from more than 24 counties across three states. In February, North Mississippi physicians implanted a vagal nerve stimulator, which is designed to treat heart failure by stimulating a nerve in the neck. The implantation marked the first time the procedure was performed in Mississippi.
Northwestern Memorial Hospital (Chicago). Founded in 1972 through the merger of two Chicago hospitals, Northwestern Memorial Hospital is affiliated with Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine and includes more than 1,600 affiliated physicians. U.S. News & World Report ranked the hospital number one in the Chicago metropolitan area, number one in Illinois and as the 12th top hospital in the country for its 2012-13 rankings. In March, a team of Northwestern Medicine physicians traveled to facilitate the development of a comprehensive trauma care system in La Paz, Bolivia, which is the poorest country in South America.
Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center (Charlotte, N.C.). Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center opened in 1903 with 20 patient beds. More than a century later, the 463-bed hospital continues to expand its clinical reach. It recently opened a hospital wing with operating rooms and a pediatric emergency department, and is currently building a 64-bed replacement facility for its orthopedic hospital. Presbyterian is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence and, in 2012, Presbyterian Cancer Center was awarded three-year accreditation with commendation as a Network Cancer Program by the Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons. Presbyterian is one of only 30 cancer centers across the country to receive such designation.
NYU Langone Medical Center (New York City). NYU Langone is nestled in the heart of Manhattan. This healthcare hub, which includes a pediatric hospital, hospital for joint diseases and an institute for rehabilitative medicine, dates back to 1841 and serves as the teaching branch for the NYU School of Medicine. U.S. News & World Report rated NYU Langone as the 11th best hospital in the country in its 2012-13 rankings and the hospital was the only organization in New York named to Thomson Reuters' list of 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals in 2012. In February, NYU Langone received a $17 million private donation to establish a veterans' mental health research center to study post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury.
Ochsner Medical Center (New Orleans). Ochsner Medical Center is a 473-bed hospital backed by more than 600 employed physicians in more than 80 specialties. The hospital, which is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence, is one of 25 hospitals nationwide to be ranked within the top 50 hospitals in the country for 11 specialties by U.S. News & World Report for 2012-13. In February, physicians at Ochsner's heart and vascular institute performed the first total artificial heart implant in the Gulf Coast region, making the hospital one of 40 sites in the country certified for this type of procedure.
The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center (Columbus). Located in Ohio's largest city, OSU Wexner Medical Center is especially recognized for its cancer, critical care, heart, medical imaging, neurosciences and transplantation programs — but it also serves as a major research hub, hosting more than 1,000 medical studies. The hospital was the first in central Ohio to receive Magnet designation for nursing excellence, and U.S. News & World Report recognized the hospital for 10 specialties in 2012-13. In March, the NBA tapped experts from OSU Wexner Medical Center to share their knowledge of ACL injuries, as OSU's sports medicine program is equipped with infrared cameras and a special gym floor tiled with motion sensors to determine how likely athletes are to injury their ACLs.
Orthopaedic Hospital of Wisconsin (Glendale). Orthopaedic Hospital of Wisconsin is a 30-bed specialty hospital founded in 2001 through a joint venture between Columbia St. Mary's Hospital in Milwaukee and a group of orthopedic surgeons. Patient satisfaction is a robust component of the hospital's culture. It received HealthGrades' Outstanding Patient Experience Award in 2013, which is based on an analysis of providers' Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems scores. Orthopaedic Hospital also received the Press Ganey Summit Award in 2012, which means the hospital has had inpatient satisfaction levels above the 95th percentile for the past three years. The hospital also supports its local community, providing 30 medical volunteers to deliver free healthcare to dozens of patients at Granville Neighborhood Health Center every six months.
Penn State Milton S. Hershey (Pa.) Medical Center. Penn State Hershey Medical Center was founded in 1963 and named after its late benefactor, philanthropist and American confectioner Milton S. Hershey, founder of Hershey Chocolate Company. The 443-bed medical center includes a children's hospital and cancer, neuroscience and heart and vascular institutes, which are backed by the hospital's employed 900-clinician medical group. The hospital, which is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence, opened its Institute for Personalized Medicine in January. The institute will collaborate with the Penn State Clinical and Translational Science Institute to advance personalized medicine research and translate it into clinical applications.
Pocono Medical Center (East Stroudsburg, Pa.). Pocono Medical Center, located about 100 miles north of Philadelphia, was founded in 1915. It has continued to evolve its care delivery for the local community while upholding its mission to bring world-class care close to home. The hospital is staffed by approximately 230 staffed clinicians and includes a heart and vascular institute, cancer center, and wide array of surgical and support services. Within the past year, Pocono opened a state-of-the-art cancer center, received the outstanding achievement award from the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer, began a joint replacement program and launched a patient-centered medical home.
Poudre Valley Hospital (Fort Collins, Colo). Poudre Valley Hospital came from humble beginnings: The hospital was built in 1925 on a budget of $181,000. In January 2012, the 270-bed regional medical center partnered with academic medical center University of Colorado Hospital to form a new parent organization, University of Colorado Health. Poudre Valley Hospital is Magnet-designated for nursing excellence, is a previous Baldrige National Quality Award recipient and was named one of the 100 Top Hospitals by Truven Health Analytics in 2013, its eight year earning such recognition.
ProMedica Toledo (Ohio) Hospital. ProMedica Toledo is one of the largest-acute care hospitals in its region, totaling 794 beds with more than 1,000 primary care and specialty physicians on staff. In the past year, HealthGrades has awarded ProMedica Toledo with its awards for clinical excellence, patient safety, cardiac care and a range of other recognitions. Last May, the hospital opened a 20-bed stroke unit that includes all private rooms, 24-hour MRI services and telemedicine capabilities to better identify, measure, treat and prevent strokes.
Providence Hospital (Southfield, Mich.). Providence Hospital, part of St. Louis-based Ascension Health, is a 355-bed facility located about 15 miles northwest of Detroit that dates back to 1845. The hospital has set itself apart through its medical advancements, having been home to a handful of medical firsts, including the area's first FDA-approved brain stent procedure. Truven Health Analytics named Providence to its lists of 100 Top Hospitals and 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals in 2013.
Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center (Spokane, Wash.). Since the hospital admitted its first patient in 1887, Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center has grown to become one of the largest hospitals in the Northwest, totaling 644 beds and including more than 800 specialists and primary care physicians. Providence Sacred Heart includes Sacred Children's Hospital, which provides care for tinier patients in more than 28 pediatric subspecialties. The hospital has been a pioneer for robotic surgery, offering a range of procedures with robotics performed in a hybrid operating room. In 2012, the hospital received HealthGrades' Patient Safety Excellence Award and also boosted its clinical presence by expanding its emergency department and family maternity center.
Rex Hospital (Raleigh, N.C.). Rex Hospital is the flagship for Rex Healthcare, part of Chapel Hill, N.C.-based UNC Health Care. Rex, which dates back to 1894, was named to HealthGrades' list of America's 50 Best Hospitals in 2013, meaning it falls within the top 1 percent of hospitals in the nation. Rex has pioneered several medical programs in the greater Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill region and North Carolina, such as establishing the first bariatric center of excellence and becoming the first hospital to complete 2,000 robotic procedures.
Robert Packer Hospital (Sayre, Pa.). Robert Packer Hospital is a 238-bed tertiary care facility that serves patients in the southern area of New York and northern tier of Pennsylvania. Part of Sayre-based Guthrie Health System and affiliated with the 260-physician Guthrie Clinic, Robert Packer was named to Thomson Reuters' list of 100 Top Hospitals in 2012, its sixth consecutive year receiving the recognition. Last summer, the hospital's cancer program also received a three-year accreditation by the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer.
Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center (Los Angeles). Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center was founded in 1955 as the primary hospital for UCLA School of Medicine. It is home to numerous medical breakthroughs, such as the first shoulder replacement, which was performed at the hospital in 1976. Through its Operation Mend program, UCLA Medical Center gives returning military personnel with severe facial and other injuries access to the nation's top plastic and reconstructive surgeons, as well as comprehensive medical and mental health support. The hospital is the preferred medical provider for the Los Angeles Lakers, and U.S. News & World Report ranked it as one of the top five hospitals in the nation in its 2012-13 rankings.
Rush University Medical Center (Chicago). Rush University Medical Center is a staple to Chicago's healthcare landscape, as Rush Medical College was founded two years before the city was even incorporated in 1839. Rush was the first hospital in Illinois serving adults and children to receive Magnet status for nursing excellence. The hospital is well recognized for its orthopedics program, which U.S. News & World Report ranked 11th out of roughly 5,000 hospitals in the country. Rush is also the preferred medical center for the Chicago Bulls, and Rush orthopedic surgeon Brian Cole, MD, performed ACL repair surgery on point guard Derrick Rose this past May.
Saint Thomas Hospital (Nashville, Tenn.). Saint Thomas Hospital was founded in 1898 when Nashville Catholic Bishop Thomas Sebastian Byrne asked the Daughters of Charity to establish a hospital within the city. Saint Thomas, a 541-bed hospital, was named to 100 Top Hospitals by Truven Health Analytics for the 12th time in 2013. In February, the hospital opened an epilepsy unit to help physicians better identify the types of seizures patients experience through electroencephalography, which measures brain waves.
Sarasota (Fla.) Memorial Hospital. Sarasota Memorial Health Care System is an 806-bed, county-owned regional medical center that opened in 1925 after residents of Sarasota raised $40,000 to build the facility due to the growing need for organized healthcare. Demand for the hospital was so great, there is a legend that Sarasota businessmen wouldn't walk down the town's main street without pulling their pockets inside-out to prove they had no more money to donate toward the cause. Sarasota Memorial is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence and is the only hospital in southwest Florida named to HealthGrades' America’s 50 Best Hospitals list, meaning it is in the nation's top 1 percent of hospitals for consistent clinical excellence.
Schneck Medical Center (Seymour, Ind.). Schneck Medical Center opened in 1911 after Mary Schneck donated $5,000 to build a hospital in memory of her late husband Louis, a pioneer industrialist. This 114-bed, government-owned hospital includes a 125-member medical staff and an array of healthcare services, with concentration on comprehensive women's healthcare. It is Magnet-designated for nursing excellence and is a past recipient of the Malcolm Baldrige Quality Award for performance excellence.
Scripps Green Hospital (La Jolla, Calif.). Since it was founded in 1977, Scripps Green Hospital has been home to several medical breakthroughs for the La Jolla and greater San Diego area, such as the first liver transplant program. The hospital continues to serve as a vanguard in healthcare, sharing its campus with Scripps Center for Integrative Medicine, which blends conventional Western medicine with more holistic therapies for a "best of both worlds" approach to care. The 173-bed hospital was named to Truven Health Analytics' 100 Top Hospitals in 2013.
Spectrum Health Butterworth Hospital (Grand Rapids, Mich.). Spectrum Health Medical Center, founded in 1873, is a teaching hospital with ties to Michigan State University College of Human Medicine. The hospital is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence and serves as an anchor for healthcare in its community. More than 8,000 babies are delivered at the hospital each year. In 2012, Leapfrog Group named Spectrum Butterworth one of its Top Urban Hospitals, and U.S. News & World Report also ranked it as one of the top in the nation for gynecology, and diabetes and endocrinology in its 2012-13 rankings.
St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital (Houston). St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital, which opened in 1954, is a 695-bed teaching hospital with ties to Baylor College of Medicine and The University of Texas Medical School at Houston. U.S. News & World Report has ranked the hospital nationally for 10 specialties and the hospital is also Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence. The Lung Transplant Program at St. Luke's Cooley Transplant Center first began performing lung and heart-lung transplants in 1994, and the hospital recently celebrated its 20th lung transplant since reactivating the program in February 2012.
St. Luke's Hospital (Cedar Rapids, Iowa). St. Luke's Hospital is a 532-bed facility and part of Cedar Rapids-based Iowa Health System. St. Luke's was named as one of the 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals by Truven Health Analytics in 2012-13, and it is one of only 41 hospitals in the country to have been named a 100 Top Hospital by Truven Health Analytics five times, most recently in 2012-13. The hospital, which is Magnet-designated for nursing excellence, is a pioneer in value-based healthcare delivery: St. Luke's is part of two accountable care organizations.
St. Vincent Indianapolis Hospital. St. Vincent Indianapolis Hospital is part of Indianapolis-based St. Vincent Health, which was named one of the 15 Top Health Systems in 2012 by Thomson Reuters. St. Vincent Indianapolis, a 584-bed hospital, is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence and was recognized by HealthGrades in 2012 as a Distinguished Hospital for Clinical Excellence. Recently, St.Vincent participated in a landmark study to evaluate the clinical evidence for safety and efficacy of ultrasound energy used with medicine to target t blood clots when treating patients with life-threatening pulmonary embolism.
Stanford Hospital & Clinics (Palo Alto, Calif.). Stanford is a 613-bed hospital with six centers of excellence. It is especially renowned for its cardiac and cancer care, along with neurology, neurosurgery, orthopedics and organ transplants. U.S. News & World Report ranked Stanford within the top 20 hospitals in the nation for its cancer and ear, nose and throat programs in 2012-13. In November 2012, Stanford became the first hospital in the country to meet The Joint Commission's standards for Disease-Specific Care Comprehensive Stroke Center Certification. It recently unveiled plans for a new outpatient cancer center in San Jose, Calif., which is expected to open in 2014.
Thomas Jefferson University Hospital (Philadelphia). Thomas Jefferson University Hospital is a 969-bed academic medical center that was founded in 1825. The hospital has received a medley of awards throughout its history, but most recently, U.S. News & World Report ranked Thomas Jefferson as the seventh best hospital in the country for orthopedics. The hospital, which is Magnet-designated for nursing excellence, was also recently accredited by the National Committee for Quality Assurance as a patient-centered medical home.
Tri-City Medical Center (Oceanside, Calif.). Tri-City Medical Center, located about 40 miles north of San Diego, opened its doors in 1961 with 42 physicians on staff. It has only grown since: Today, the 397-bed hospital includes more than 500 physicians. Tri-City continually promotes the value of innovation in healthcare services. For instance, this past summer, a Tri-City orthopedic surgeon performed the first vitamin E total knee replacement in San Diego county. Tri-City is also adapting to new delivery models. The hospital's accountable care organization, North Coast Medical ACO, was the only one in San Diego chosen to participate in the Medicare Shared Savings ACO program in the summer of 2012.
Trinity Rock Island (Ill.). Part of Des Moines-based Iowa Health System, Trinity Rock Island is a 504-bed entity comprised of four hospitals, 338-bed Trinity Rock Island being the most robust with the largest inpatient capacity. Magnet-designated for nursing excellence, Trinity Rock Island has received designations from Blue Cross Blue Shield as a Blue Distinction Center+ for knee and hip replacements. HealthGrades also named Trinity Rock Island as one of its 100 Best Hospitals for Cardiac Care and Coronary Interventional Procedures in 2013.
UAB Hospital (Birmingham, Ala.). With 1,046 beds and more than 900 physicians, UAB Hospital is a healthcare giant for the Birmingham area, and one of the four largest academic medical centers in the country. The hospital was established in 1945 as the teaching hospital for the University of Alabama School of Medicine, and since then, UAB has helped lead the way for healthcare in Alabama. It includes the only Level I trauma center in the state, was the first hospital to receive Magnet accreditation for nursing excellence in the state, and is the only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center located in a six-state area.
UC San Diego Medical Center. UC San Diego Medical Center is a staple in its local healthcare landscape, being the only academic medical center in the city and also the top-ranked hospital in San Diego, according to U.S. News & World Report's 2012-13 rankings. In February, UC San Diego's Napoleone Ferrara, MD, PhD, the molecular biologist credited with helping decipher how tumors grow, received the $3 million Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences for his work. UC San Diego was one of the 100 Top Hospitals named by Truven Health Analytics in 2012-13, and its affiliated cardiovascular center was also one of Truven's 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals.
UCSF Medical Center (San Francisco). UCSF Medical Center has a robust reputation for medical care and research, as evidenced by its receiving a $20 million gift for neuroscience research and a $36 million grant for its Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center in 2012. The hospital is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence and was named the 13th best hospital in the nation by U.S. News & World Report in its 2012-13 rankings. UCSF's Medical Center at Mission Bay is poised to be a major medical hub, as it will include three hospitals — children's, women's specialty and cancer. It is slated to open in February 2015.
University Hospital (Salt Lake City). University Hospital opened in 1965 and has since grown to include more than 1,000 University of Utah physicians trained in 200 medical specialties. As one of the few academic medical centers in the Intermountain West area, the hospital continues to expand its presence in and around Salt Lake City, having opened its multispecialty center in January 2012, its $200 million patient care pavilion three years prior, and a health and wellness center in 2008. HealthGrades ranked University Hospital as the best in the Salt Lake City region in 2012 based on overall patient experience.
University Medical Center at Princeton at Plainsboro (N.J.). University Medical Center at Princeton straddles the old and the new. The hospital dates back to 1919, but just opened a new $447-million, state-of-the-art hospital campus in May 2012, featuring 231 single-patient rooms and an array of other contemporary amenities. University Medical Center at Princeton operates around 10 central centers for care, including centers for cancer, eating disorders, and neuroscience. The hospital received Magnet-accreditation for nursing excellence in November. It is partnered with The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia for enhanced pediatric services, and Penn Medicine for its Penn Maternal Fetal Medicine at University Medical Center at Princeton program.
University of Chicago Medical Center. University of Chicago Medical Center opened its doors to patients in 1927. Throughout its history, hospital parent University of Chicago Medicine has been affiliated with 12 winners of the Nobel Prize. Magnet-accredited by the American Nurse Credentialing Center, the University of Chicago Medical Center's cancer program was ranked 15th in the country by U.S. News & World Report in 2012-13. The medical center is one of the largest providers of uncompensated care in Illinois, providing millions of dollars in unreimbursed care every year. In February, University of Chicago Medicine opened its Center for Care a Discovery, a 10-story "hospital for the future" featuring a novel, patient-centered design for more seamless care delivery.
University of Colorado Hospital (Aurora). University of Colorado Hospital dates back to 1921 when it was founded as part of the University of Colorado medical campus, and the hospital still shares its campus with the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine to this day. University of Colorado Hospital is Magnet-designated for nursing excellence, and its cancer center has received National Cancer Institute-accreditation as a comprehensive cancer center four times, most recently in August 2012. University HealthSystem Consortium named University of Colorado Hospital as the highest-performing academic hospital in the United States for delivering quality health care in September 2012, the second consecutive year it earned such recognition.
University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics (Iowa City). University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics is a 711-bed hospital, including a 190-bed children's hospital, that includes more than 1,545 physicians. UI Hospitals and Clinics was the first in the state to receive Magnet-accreditation for nursing excellence. The hospital, which is part of an accountable care organization, was ranked the number one hospital in the state by U.S. News & World Report in 2012-13. In October 2012, it expanded its clinical reach with the opening of its new $73 million ambulatory care clinic in Coralville, Iowa.
University of Maryland Medical Center (Baltimore). Dating back to 1823, the 675-bed University of Maryland Medical Center is one of the country's first teaching hospitals. The hospital is backed by approximately 1,135 physicians, all of whom are on the faculty of the University of Maryland School of Medicine. The hospital is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence and was named one of the best hospitals in the country for patient safety and quality of care by Leapfrog Group in 2012, the seventh consecutive year the hospital received such distinction. In March 2012, physicians at the hospital performed the most extensive full-face transplant to date for a patient who lost most of his face in a gun accident. Following the procedure, the 37-year-old patient returned to his normal life after he had avoided people for 15 years.
University of Michigan Medical Center. The flagship of University of Michigan Health System, U-M Medical Center includes C.S. Mott's Children's Hospital, a comprehensive cancer center, a neuroscience center, cardiovascular center and women's hospital. The organization is a pioneer in value-based care delivery and was one of the first hospitals to be part of the CMS' Pioneer Accountable Care Organization program. U.S. News & World Report has ranked U-M Hospitals as one of its 17 Honor Roll hospitals, which scored at or near the top of their "class" for at least six of 16 medical specialties. Truven Health Analytics also awarded U-M Health System the Everest Award in 2013, an honor bestowed to only 17 hospitals across the country for improving performance measures on patient safety, quality and financial stability.
University of Washington Medical Center (Seattle). University of Washington Medical Center is a 450-bed hospital that opened as one of the country's smallest teaching hospitals in 1959. The hospital has rocketed from those humble beginnings and pioneered several medical findings, such as a World Health Organization pilot that linked surgical checklists to decreased medical complications. The hospital is Magnet-accredited for nursing excellence, and U.S. News & World Report ranked it first in the Seattle metropolitan area in 2012-13.
UPMC Presbyterian (Pittsburgh). Founded in 1893, the robust UPMC Presbyterian is a mainstay in the American healthcare landscape. U.S. News & World Report ranked the hospital first in the state and 10th out of nearly 5,000 hospitals in the country in its 2012-13 rankings. UPMC's heart and lung transplant program is one of the most experienced in the world, with more than 1,300 adult cardiac transplants and 1,600 adult lung or heart-lung transplants performed. In March, UPMC surgeons performed the first breathing lung transplant on the East Coast, in which a machine kept oxygen pumping through the organ before it was transplanted in the patient.
Vanderbilt University Medical Center (Nashville, Tenn.). Vanderbilt University Medical Center is home to much-needed programs in the Nashville area, such as the only comprehensive heart transplant program and dedicated burn center in the region. The 584-bed hospital is a leader in both medical treatment and research, as it hosts numerous clinical trials, including a recent one in which Vanderbilt researchers are testing a drug to shrink melanoma tumors. In 2012-13, U.S. News & World Report ranked Vanderbilt the number one hospital in Tennessee.
Yale-New Haven (Conn.) Hospital. Yale-New Haven Hospital is a 1,541-bed teaching hospital affiliated with Yale Schools of Medicine and Nursing. The hospital is home to a range of medical breakthroughs, ranging from the first successful use of penicillin in 1946 to the first bronchial thermoplasty procedure performed in Connecticut in 2011. The hospital, which is Magnet-designated for nursing excellence, was ranked first in the state by U.S. News & World Report and as high-ranking in 10 adult specialties in 2012-13.