Seven medical specialty programs at Shands at the University of Florida are recognized among the nation’s best in the 2011-2012 U.S. News & World Report’s Best Hospitals rankings, which were released on Tuesday.
Shands at UF had the highest ranking among Florida hospitals in five specialties: urology (tied for 23rd nationally); cardiology & heart surgery (tied for 27th nationally); neurology & neurosurgery (28th nationally); pulmonology (28th nationally); and nephrology (tied for 35th nationally).
Shands at UF was also ranked in cancer (35th nationally) and gastroenterology (38th nationally).
The hospital-based programs are staffed by interdisciplinary teams including UF College of Medicine faculty physicians and Shands nursing, clinical and support staff.
Out of 4,852 facilities considered for the 2011-12 Best Hospitals rankings, only 140 were ranked in any of the 16 specialties. Shands at UF is recognized consistently in this annual report. The rankings take into consideration the reputation of each hospital, its death rate and a set of care-related factors such as nursing and patient services. Medical centers are assessed for competence providing complex care for patients who are high-risk. For details, see methodology.
Urology was Shands’ highest-ranked program this year.
U.S. News & World Report’s 2011-12 Best Hospitals listings are available online at www.usnews.com/besthospitals and will be featured in the August print issue of U.S. News, available on newsstands Aug. 30.
Additionally, Shands at UF was recognized in five specialties – diabetes & endocrinology; ear, nose & throat; geriatrics; gynecology; and orthopedics – as “high-performing,” meaning they are not in the top 50 rankings but in the top 25 percent of hospitals evaluated.
“U.S. News & World Report has formally recognized what we at UF&Shands observe every day among our physicians, nurses and team members who provide outstanding patient care,” said Timothy M. Goldfarb, Shands HealthCare CEO. “It is especially gratifying that we were highly ranked in so many specialty areas.”
Earlier this year, Shands Hospital for Children was recognized in six medical specialties in the 2011-12 U.S. News Best Children’s Hospitals rankings: diabetes & endocrinology (14th); nephrology (33rd); gastroenterology (38th); pulmonology (39th); neurology & neurosurgery (47th); and cardiology & heart surgery (tied for 49th). The diabetes & endocrinology and gastroenterology programs were ranked highest in the state.
