RWJUH Named One of the Nation’s Best Hospitals by U.S.News & World Report for Third Consecutive Year

Thursday, July 16, 2009

(New Brunswick, NJ) - Out of more than 4,861 hospitals evaluated in the United States, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) placed among the top hospitals in heart care and heart surgery, cancer care and respiratory disorders, according to U.S.News & World Report’s 2009 ranking of “America’s Best Hospitals.”

RWJUH is one of only 174 U.S. hospitals to achieve rankings on the prestigious annual list. RWJUH ranked 36th in heart and heart surgery, 40th in cancer care and 50th in respiratory disorders among the hospitals that were surveyed. This year’s rankings mark the third consecutive year that RWJUH has earned “America’s Best Hospitals” status. In addition, the hospital’s cancer program is the only such program in New Jersey to appear on the U.S.News list.

“Earning this distinction for three years in a row is clear evidence that RWJUH has established itself as a national leader in academic medicine and it is a direct result of the strong partnerships that we have fostered with UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and The Cancer Institute of New Jersey as well as the private oncologists who work collaboratively,” said Stephen K. Jones, FACHE, President and Chief Executive Officer of Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital. “It has been an outstanding year for RWJUH and a wonderful time for us to be celebrating our proud 125-year history of “moving medicine forward.” Recently, we successfully implanted the world’s first FDA-approved, self-contained artificial heart, our hospital was named New Jersey’s Hospital of the Year by NJBIZ and now we have received this prestigious honor.”

Jones added, “This recognition is fitting for our entire team of dedicated faculty and community physicians, nurses and employees, as well as all of the partners on our academic health campus whose commitment to excellence and quality in patient care is second to none. Making the U.S.News & World Report list places us among some of the finest medical centers in the United States and it demonstrates once again that you can have access to some of the most advanced innovations and best medical care in the nation close to home.”

U.S.News & World Report’s 2009 “America’s Best Hospitals” guide ranks 174 medical centers nationwide in 16 specialties—with full data available online at www.usnews.com/besthospitals for another 1,500 that are unranked. The 16 ranked specialties are: cancer; diabetes and endocrine disorders; digestive disorders; ear, nose and throat; geriatric care; gynecology; heart and heart surgery; kidney disorders; neurology and neurosurgery; ophthalmology; orthopedics; psychiatry; rehabilitation; respiratory disorders; rheumatology; and urology.

For a referral to a physician affiliated with RWJUH, please call 1-888-MD-RWJUH. Follow us on Twitter at www.rwjuh.edu/twitter and Facebook at www.rwjuh.edu/facebook.

About Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital

Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) is a 600-bed academic medical center and the principal hospital of UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Brunswick, NJ. Robert Wood Johnson is an innovative leader in advancing state-of-the-art care. RWJUH is the first hospital in the nation to implant the AbioCor self-contained artificial heart since the device received FDA approval in 2006. RWJUH is one of only three sites in the nation approved to offer this groundbreaking technology.

Its Centers of Excellence include cardiovascular care from minimally invasive heart surgery to transplantation, cancer care, and women’s and children’s care including The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (www.bmsch.org). The hospital is also a Level 1 Trauma Center and serves as a national resource in its ground-breaking approaches to emergency preparedness.

The hospital has earned significant national recognition for clinical quality and patient safety. Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital is among U.S.News & World Report’s 2010 “America’s Best Hospitals.” It is the fourth consecutive year that RWJUH has achieved this prestigious ranking. The American College of Surgeons’ Commission on Cancer has rated RWJUH among the nation's best comprehensive cancer centers. The Leapfrog Group rated RWJUH as one of the 50 exceptional U.S. hospitals, as published in Consumers Digest magazine. Harvard University researchers, in a study commissioned by The Commonwealth Fund, identified RWJUH as one of the top 10 hospitals in the nation for clinical quality. RWJUH is also a recipient of the prestigious Magnet Award for Nursing Excellence for more than 10 consecutive years.

return to top of page