FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
July 13, 2001

UC DAVIS MEDICAL CENTER RANKS AMONG TOP 50 HOSPITALS IN AMERICA

(Sacramento, Calif.) -- UC Davis Medical Center ranks among America's Best Hospitals in nine of 17 medical specialties, according to an annual survey published in the July 13 issue of U.S. News & World Report.

UC Davis Medical Center achieved top recognition in the areas of digestive disorders (39th), ear, throat and nose (38th), geriatrics (46th), hormonal disorders (36th), kidney disease (29th), orthopaedics (31st), respiratory disorders (24th), rheumatology (47th) and urology (37th).

Starting with a list of more than 6,000 hospitals across the nation, U.S. News & World Report identified 1,878 hospitals that are teaching hospitals, affiliated with a medical school or have a majority of predetermined technology services. From that, the magazine ranked medical specialties using a three-part model that combines reputation, death rate and a set of patient care factors, including the number of procedures a hospital performs in a particular specialty, the number of nurses for each patient and the number of important kinds of medical technology that are available.

UC Davis Medical Center received the highest ratio of registered nurses to patients (2.79) among specialties where it ranks among the top 50. This high ratio reflects the fact that the medical center is one of only 28 hospitals in the nation designated as a magnet nursing center of excellence for the quality of patient care services and the development of successful, professional nursing practices and strategies.

The magazine bases information about an institution's reputation on a rolling three-year survey of physicians. Each year, 150 physicians, who are board-certified in the relevant specialty, are selected at random and asked to name the five hospitals they consider the best in their respective specialty.

The 17 medical specialties evaluated in the survey include eye disorders; pediatrics; psychiatry; rehabilitative medicine; cancer; heart; digestive disorders; ear, nose, and throat; geriatrics; gynecology; hormonal disorders; neurology and neurosurgery; orthopaedics; respiratory disorders; rheumatology and urology.

UC Davis Medical Center has consistently appeared among the best hospitals in the magazine's survey since 1993, when the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago began conducting the assessment. Over the past three years, UC Davis Medical Center has also ranked in the top 50 for cancer, endocrinology, otolaryngology and neurology.

Copies of all news releases from UC Davis Health System are available on the Web at http://news.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu

Media Contact: Martha Alcott
(916)734-9027
Pager: (916) 762-9846

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