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Tuesday, July 30, 2019

University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics is listed among the nation’s best hospitals in six adult care specialties, according to 2019–20 rankings released by U.S. News & World Report

UI Hospitals & Clinics ranked in the following areas: 

  • 6 in ear, nose, and throat
  • 6 in ophthalmology
  • 19 in gynecology
  • 27 in orthopedics
  • 27 in pulmonology and lung surgery 
  • 43 (tie) in cancer

UI Hospitals & Clinics is the only nationally ranked hospital in Iowa. 

“Our continued rankings with U.S. News highlight our commitment to excellence for our patients and from our faculty and staff,” says Brooks Jackson, UI vice president for medical affairs and the Tyrone D. Artz Dean of the Carver College of Medicine. “There is a well-deserved expectation of world-class excellence from our institution, and that comes from ranking among the very best. We are proud to again be among those on that list.”

Two additional specialties—urology and geriatrics—were listed as high-performing by U.S. News.

“These rankings are indicative of the great patient care that is at the center of everything we do,” says Suresh Gunasekaran, associate vice president of UI Health Care and chief executive officer of UI Hospitals & Clinics. “Great patient care is a result of medical teams that are committed to giving their best, every single day.”

In June, the UI Stead Family Children’s Hospital was named by U.S. News as one of the nation’s best children’s hospitals for the 11th consecutive year, with national rankings in six pediatric care specialties. In March, U.S. News listed the research and primary care missions of the UI Carver College of Medicine in its rankings of Best Graduate Schools.

The methodology for determining rankings changes periodically, but U.S. News & World Report officials said in June that the changes made this year are so significant that “a hospital’s performance in the new rankings should not be compared with its numerical rank or unranked status from previous years.”

“This year’s methodology changes were undertaken for the same reason as each of the iterations that preceded it: to help patients and their caregivers, together with their medical professionals, make important healthcare decisions,” Ben Harder, managing editor and chief of health analysis at U.S. News, wrote in a June blog post.

For the 2019–20 rankings and ratings, U.S. News evaluated more than 4,500 medical centers nationwide in 25 specialties, procedures, and conditions. In the 16 specialty areas, 165 hospitals were ranked in at least one specialty. In rankings by state and metro area, U.S. News recognized hospitals as high-performing across multiple areas of care. 

The U.S. News Best Hospitals methodologies in most areas of care are based largely on objective measures such as risk-adjusted survival and discharge-to-home rates, volume, and quality of nursing, among other care-related indicators.

For more information about the 2019–20 rankings and ratings, please visit the FAQ. The rankings will be published in the U.S. News “Best Hospitals 2020” guidebook (ISBN 9781931469937), available for pre-order now from the U.S. News online store and for purchase at other bookstores in mid-September.