Children's Hospital one of nation's best

The Children's Hospital once again has been ranked among the nation's top children's hospitals in the U.S. News & World Report 2011-12 Best Children's Hospitals rankings. Children's ranked fifth on the U.S. News & World Report Best Children's Hospital's 2011-12 Honor Roll.

Children's has been ranked a top children's hospital by U.S. News & World Report every year since the inception of its rankings edition in 1993. Five of Children's specialty areas were among the country's top 10, including cancer (10), diabetes and endocrinology (4), gastroenterology (5), orthopedics (9) and pulmonology (4).

"This is fantastic news for the children of Colorado and the Rocky Mountain region who continue to have access to the nation's top health care providers in their own backyards," said Jim Shmerling, DHA, FACHE, president and CEO of The Children's Hospital. "I'm honored to be part of such a fine organization and to be surrounded by talented colleagues who are committed to providing the best care to every child."

"We salute The Children's Hospital," said Health Rankings Editor, Avery Comarow. "The goal of the Best Children's Hospitals rankings is to call attention to pediatric centers with the expertise to help the sickest kids, and The Children's Hospital in Denver is one of those centers."

The new rankings recognize the top 50 children's hospitals in 10 specialties: cancer, cardiology and heart surgery, diabetes and endocrinology, gastroenterology, neonatology, nephrology, neurology and neurosurgery, orthopedics, pulmonology, and urology. Seventy-six hospitals are ranked in at least one specialty.

Best Children's Hospitals pulls together clinical and operational data from a lengthy survey, completed by the majority of the 177 hospitals asked to participate for the 2011-12 rankings. The survey asks hundreds of questions about survival rates, nurse staffing, subspecialist availability, and many more pieces of critical information difficult or impossible for those in charge of a child's care to find on their own. The data from the survey is combined with recommendations from pediatric specialists on the hospitals they consider best for children with challenging problems.

For the full rankings and methodology, visit www.usnews.com/childrenshospitals.

About The Children's Hospital

The Children's Hospital has defined and delivered pediatric healthcare excellence for more than 100 years. Founded in 1908, The Children's Hospital is a leading pediatric network entirely devoted to the health and well-being of children. Continually recognized as one of the nation's outstanding hospitals by U.S. News & World Report, The Children's Hospital is known both for its nationally and internationally recognized medical, research and education programs as well as the full spectrum of everyday care for kids throughout Colorado and surrounding states. With more than 1,000 healthcare professionals representing the full spectrum of pediatric specialties, The Children's Hospital network includes its main campus on the Anschutz Medical Campus, 15 Network of Care locations and more than 400 outreach clinics.