U.S. News & World Report Announces 2011-2012 Best Children's Hospitals Rankings

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C.—U.S. News & World Report today released the 2011-12 Best Children's Hospitals rankings of America's top pediatric facilities in 10 pediatric specialties. Children's Hospital Boston and Children's Hospital of Philadelphia have been named the top pediatric hospitals on the 2011-12 pediatric honor roll, which recognizes excellence across a broad range of pediatric specialties.

The results are based on an extensive analysis by RTI International using a well-respected methodology that combines data from a survey of physicians, a direct survey of children's hospitals (mostly freestanding hospitals and large pediatric services amounting to a "hospitals within a hospital"), and other resources.

The data reflect hospital quality in three key aspects of hospital care: clinical outcomes such as surgical death rates, reputation among pediatric specialists, and hospital characteristics such as infection control programs and nursing adequacy. Ranking was based on a hospital's combined score in the three elements.

The 50 top-ranked hospitals are displayed in each of the 10 specialties: cancer, cardiology and heart surgery, diabetes and endocrinology, gastroenterology, neonatology, nephrology, neurology and neurosurgery, orthopedics, pulmonology, and urology.

A total of 177 U.S. children's hospitals were eligible for the rankings. Most are members of the National Association of Children's Hospitals and Related Institutions (NACHRI), although several non-NACHRI members were added because of known expertise or other factors.

In addition to compiling the rankings, RTI conducts an ongoing evaluation of the study methodology. The 2011-12 edition of Best Children's Hospitals and the full methodology are available at the U.S. News & World Report website.