Northwestern Memorial Only Illinois Hospital Ranked on U.S. News' 2012 Honor Roll of America's Best Hospitals

Northwestern No. 1 in Illinois and Chicago in U.S. News' 2012 "Best Hospitals" ranking

CHICAGO, July 17, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In the 2012 ranking of the nation's "Best Hospitals" published by U.S. News & World Report, both Northwestern Memorial and Northwestern Lake Forest hospitals earned recognition in Illinois and the Chicago metro area, with Northwestern Memorial ranked No. 1 in both areas and named to the prestigious honor roll of the nation's top hospitals. Northwestern Memorial is 12th among 18 hospitals to make U.S. News' 2012 Honor Roll. The Honor Roll is a prestigious recognition given only to a handful of hospitals in the country each year.  

This year, editorial staff for the authoritative and influential guide evaluated nearly 5,000 medical centers nationwide. Hospitals were chosen and ranked according to the Top 50 programs in 16 clinical areas. The 16 specialties include cancer, cardiology and heart surgery, diabetes and endocrinology, ear, nose and throat, gastroenterology, geriatrics, gynecology, kidney disorders, neurology and neurosurgery, ophthalmology, orthopaedics, psychiatry, pulmonology, rehabilitation, rheumatology and urology.  

Northwestern Memorial is rated in the following 12 specialties: cancer (27), cardiology and heart surgery (17), diabetes and endocrinology (12), ear, nose and throat (17), gastroenterology (17), geriatrics (18), gynecology (19), nephrology (21), neurology and neurosurgery (11), orthopaedics (16), pulmonology (17), and urology (18).  Northwestern Memorial is also high-performing in rheumatology.

Northwestern Lake Forest ranked No. 20 in Illinois, No. 18 in Chicago metro, and was noted as high-performing in the categories of gastroenterology, geriatrics, gynecology, nephrology, neurology and neurosurgery and orthopaedics.

The rankings were driven by data such as death rates, procedure volume, and balance of nurses and patients. In the four remaining specialties--ophthalmology, psychiatry, rehabilitation and rheumatology--hospitals were ranked on reputation alone.

To be considered in the ranked specialties, a hospital first had to meet at least one of four criteria: It had to be a teaching hospital, or be affiliated with a medical school, or have at least 200 beds, or have 100 or more beds and the availability of four or more types of important medical technology. 

Next, hospitals had to meet a volume requirement, individually calculated for each specialty. The required volume was the number of Medicare inpatients from 2006 to 2008 who had various specified procedures and conditions in the specialty. A hospital that fell short could still qualify if it had been nominated by at least one physician in any of the U.S. News Best Hospitals reputational surveys conducted in 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011.

To view the listings, visit www.usnews.com/besthospitals.   

To learn more about our programs and services or to schedule an appointment, call us at (312) 926-0779 or visit us online at www.nmh.org.

About Northwestern Memorial HealthCare
Northwestern Memorial HealthCare is the parent corporation of Chicago's Northwestern Memorial Hospital, an 894-bed academic medical center hospital and Northwestern Lake Forest Hospital, a 205-bed community hospital located in Lake Forest, Illinois. 

About Northwestern Memorial Hospital
Northwestern Memorial is one of the country's premier academic medical center hospitals and is the primary teaching hospital of the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.  Along with its Prentice Women's Hospital and Stone Institute of Psychiatry, the hospital comprises 894 beds, 1,705 affiliated physicians and 6,769 employees.  Northwestern Memorial is recognized for providing exemplary patient care and state-of-the art advancements in the areas of cardiovascular care; women's health; oncology; neurology and neurosurgery; solid organ and soft tissue transplants and orthopaedics.

Northwestern Memorial possesses nursing Magnet Status, the nation's highest recognition for patient care and nursing excellence.  It is also listed in 13 clinical specialties in U.S. News & World Report's 2011 "America's Best Hospitals" guide and ranks No. 1 in Chicago in the 2011 U.S. News & World Report Best Hospitals metro area rankings. For 12 years running, Northwestern Memorial has been rated among the "100 Best Companies for Working Mothers" guide by Working Mother magazine. The hospital is a recipient of the prestigious National Quality Health Care Award and has been chosen by Chicagoans as the Consumer Choice according to the National Research Corporation's annual survey for 13 years. 

SOURCE Northwestern Memorial Hospital