Central Pennsylvania residents don’t have to travel far to reach several hospitals ranked among the best in Pennsylvania and even the nation, according to U.S. News & World Report.
The U.S. News annual “Best Hospitals” report was published Tuesday.
Penn Medicine Lancaster General Hospital is ranked the fourth-best hospital in Pennsylvania. It’s also ranked 36th in the United States for urology, which involves the urinary tract and male reproductive organs, and 48th in orthopedics, which involves the bones and joints.
Lancaster General’s overall high ranking reflects being considered in the top 10% of hospitals in the country for a long list of hospital procedures and treatments related to things such as cancer, diabetes and gastroenterology.
UPMC Pinnacle, which includes Harrisburg and West Shore hospitals, and Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center are tied for sixth-best in the state.
Penn State Hershey also ranked 37th in the United States for orthopedics. Both Penn State Hershey and UPMC Pinnacle were deemed “high performing” in multiple specialties and among the top 10% in the nation in more than a dozen other areas.
Reading Hospital in Berks County is ranked eighth among Pennsylvania Hospitals. WellSpan York Hospital is ranked 18th and Geisinger Medical Center in Montour County is ranked 20th.
The number one hospital in Pennsylvania, according to U.S. News, is University of Pennsylvania-Penn Presbyterian. University of Pennsylvania-Penn Presbyterian also received national honors, ranking 13th on U.S. News & World Report’s honor roll of the nation’s best hospitals.
The top ranking in the United States goes to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., followed by Cleveland Clinic and UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles.
The number 4 hospital on the honor roll is in reach for Harrisburg-region residents: Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore.
The rankings are based on measures including volume, Medicare outcomes data, mortality rates, nurse staffing levels, patient satisfaction and opinions of top physician specialists.
They have long been considered a premier guide to the best medical care in the United States, especially for people dealing with especially complicated and life-threatening illnesses.
In compiling its report, U.S. News considered most community hospitals in the United States, about 4,500. The report doesn’t cover Veterans Administration and military hospitals.
Penn State Hershey and Lancaster General, in being ranked in the top 50 in at least one area, are in a select group. Only 175 hospitals in the United States attaining a top-50 ranking.
U.S. News says patients and their families should use the report as a “starting point” to help inform discussions with their doctor about where to seek care, with the final decision made in collaboration with their doctor.
“Patients still have to do their own research and talk with their doctors. We also understand that families have to consider such factors as the stress and expense of travel and lodging in another city and their insurer’s willingness to pay for care if a hospital is out of network,” U.S. News wrote.