UCSF Medical Center ranked among the top 10 centers nationwide in 10 specialty areas: diabetes and endocrinology, neurology and neurosurgery, and urology (all ranked 3rd nationwide), orthopedics (4th), geriatrics (5th), nephrology (6th), rheumatology (7th), pulmonology (8th), ophthalmology and psychiatry (both 9th). It was the highest-ranking hospital in Northern California for cancer care (12th-tie), and gastroenterology and GI surgery (11th-tie), and was 13th (tie) in otolaryngology.
Additionally, UCSF received the highest possible ranking – high performing – in 8 of 9 common specialty procedures that were evaluated: abdominal aortic aneurysm repair, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, colon cancer surgery, heart bypass surgery, heart failure, hip replacement, knee replacement and lung cancer surgery.
"It is deeply gratifying that we have been recognized so consistently among the very best hospitals in the country," said Mark R. Laret, chief executive officer and president of UCSF Health, which includes UCSF Medical Center and UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals.
"This achievement is a reflection of our unwavering commitment to providing the best health care," Laret said. "It also reflects the dedication and expertise of our clinical teams in the care they give, day after day, on behalf of our patients. We're pleased to see that, once again, U.S. News has taken into account the higher risk level of our patients' conditions and level of care that our teams provide."
This is the 18th year since 2001 in which two UC Health hospitals – UCLA Medical Center and UCSF Medical Center – have claimed both of the top two spots among California's best hospitals.
"We're so proud of the entire UCSF Health team, whose work is at the heart of our mission," said Dr. Sam Hawgood, chancellor of UC San Francisco. "This shows their abiding commitment to excellence, and to advancing health through patient care, research and education."
In a separate set of pediatric rankings in June, UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals placed among the nation's best in all 10 pediatric specialties surveyed. The pediatric list serves as a guide to hospitals that excel in treating children with the most challenging diagnoses.
U.S. News & World Report began ranking hospitals in 1990. The specialty rankings assess hospital performance in high-complexity areas of inpatient care and are designed to identify medical centers that treat the most serious or complicated patients, "whose illnesses pose unusual challenges because of underlying conditions, procedure difficulty, advanced age or other medical issues that add risk."
They are published annually to help patients and their physicians make informed decisions about where to receive care for challenging health conditions or for common elective procedures. This year, U.S. News made significant changes to its methodology, including the addition of patient experience into specialty rankings and creation of a more sophisticated risk model for specialty rankings.
