Texas Children's Hospital ranks 4th among nation's best pediatric institutions by U.S.News & World Report

Newborn, heart, digestive disorders and pulmonology all top ranked subspecialties

HOUSTON, June 5, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Texas Children's Hospital has once again been named as a national leader among pediatric hospitals in U.S.News & World Report's 2012-13 edition of Best Children's Hospitals. Ranked 4th among all children's hospitals nationally and one of only 12 hospitals to achieve the Honor Roll designation, Texas Children's is the only hospital in Texas – and the entire Southern region of the U.S. – awarded this distinction. For more information, visit www.usnews.texaschildrens.org.

"We are proud to have earned this recognition by U.S. News, again being ranked as one of the nation's best pediatric hospitals," said Mark A. Wallace, president and CEO of Texas Children's Hospital. "It is an outstanding achievement and a tribute to our physicians and staff for their passion for our mission and ardent dedication to excellence in patient care."

In addition to ranking children's hospitals overall, U.S. News also ranks pediatric hospitals across 10 major subspecialties. This year, Texas Children's was ranked in the top 10 for eight out of 10 categories; high rankings in a minimum of three specialties also qualified Texas Children's for the 2012-13 Best Children's Hospitals Honor Roll, a distinction awarded to only 12 children's centers nationwide.

Texas Children's, together with academic partner Baylor College of Medicine (BCM), continues to pioneer advancements in pediatric health care and earns the Honor Roll distinction by being ranked among America's best in:

• #4 Cancer
• #3 Cardiology & Heart Surgery
• #3 Gastroenterology (digestive disorders)
• #5 Neurology & Neurosurgery
• #2 Neonatology
• #5 Nephrology (kidney disorders)
• #3 Pulmonology
• #7 Urology
• #14 Diabetes & Endocrinology
• #33 Orthopedics

"Texas Children's notable ranking, in the midst of other exemplary pediatric institutions, is truly outstanding," said Dr. Mark Kline, physician-in-chief of Texas Children's Hospital and chair of the Department of Pediatrics at BCM. "I'm particularly proud that we have four subspecialties ranked among the top three nationally and another three that are ranked among the top five. It's a reflection of the outstanding commitment by our physicians, clinicians, researchers and all employees to the highest standard of care for our patients."

The rankings are a result of a methodology that weighed a combination of reputation, outcome and care-related measures such as nursing care, advanced technology and credentialing, among other factors. The hospitals also were judged based on a combination of opinions from pediatric specialists about the hospitals they would recommend for the sickest children and data gathered in an extensive survey of the hospitals themselves.

"Treating everything from the most common to the highly complex surgical needs of children is an integral part of providing the highest quality of care and a major criterion of these rankings," said Dr. Charles D. Fraser Jr., surgeon-in-chief of Texas Children's Hospital and professor of congenital heart surgery at BCM. "Texas Children's Department of Surgery is a preeminent surgical program nationally and these rankings signify the strength of both the department and hospital overall."

The 2012-13 edition of Best Children's Hospitals is available online at www.usnews.com/childrenshospitals and will be featured in U.S. News' annual guidebook of Best Hospitals 2013 which will ship in mid August.

About Texas Children's Hospital

Texas Children's Hospital, a not-for-profit organization, is committed to creating a community of healthy children through excellence in patient care, education and research. Consistently ranked among the top children's hospitals in the nation, Texas Children's has recognized Centers of Excellence in multiple pediatric subspecialties including the Cancer and Heart Centers, and operates the largest primary pediatric care network in the country. Texas Children's has completed a $1.5 billion expansion, which includes the Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute; Texas Children's Pavilion for Women, a comprehensive obstetrics/gynecology facility focusing on high-risk births; and Texas Children's Hospital West Campus, a community hospital in suburban West Houston.  For more information on Texas Children's, go to www.texaschildrens.org. Get the latest news from Texas Children's by visiting the online newsroom and on Twitter at twitter.com/texaschildrens.

Contact: Jenn Blackmer
832-824-2679
[email protected]

SOURCE Texas Children's Hospital