SAN DIEGO (July 19, 2011) – U.S. News & World Report’s 2011-2012 Best Hospitals rankings has again named the combined heart programs of Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla and Scripps Green Hospital among the best in the nation for cardiology and heart surgery. In addition, Scripps La Jolla, Scripps Green, Scripps Memorial Hospital Encinitas and Scripps Mercy Hospital were collectively recognized for high performance in 12 specialties in the Best Hospitals metro area rankings for San Diego.  

“This honor reflects the great teamwork we have in place at the Scripps Cardiovascular Institute (SCI),” said Paul Teirstein, MD, cardiologist and medical director of the Scripps Cardiovascular Institute. “Although construction of the SCI is only beginning, cardiovascular teams from throughout the Scripps system and Kaiser Permanente San Diego are working closely together to promote excellence. It is rewarding to see our high quality care recognized at the national level.”

Scripps recently broke ground on the $456 million heart institute, a center for innovation that will bring together top researchers, physicians and staff. SCI will incorporate leading-edge wireless technologies and individualized medicine for the best in patient care when it opens in 2015. Annually, more than 55,000 patients receive their cardiovascular care from Scripps, making it San Diego County’s largest heart care provider. For 25 years, Scripps has partnered with Kaiser Permanente to provide cardiovascular services to Kaiser’s San Diego County members, and recently signed a 10-year contract to extend that relationship. Through the outstanding efforts of Scripps and Kaiser physicians, Scripps is the San Diego region’s only cardiovascular program consistently recognized by U.S. News & World Report as one of the best in the country for five of the last six years.

Besides a national ranking in cardiology and cardiac surgery, Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla and Scripps Green Hospital were recognized for high performance in 11 specialty areas including cancer; diabetes and endocrinology; ear, nose and throat; gastroenterology; geriatrics; gynecology; kidney disorders; neurology and neurosurgery; orthopedics; pulmonology; and urology. 

Scripps Mercy Hospital was recognized for high performance in 10 specialties including cancer, cardiology and heart surgery, diabetes and endocrinology, gastroenterology, geriatrics, kidney disorders, neurology and neurosurgery, orthopedics, pulmonology and urology. 

Scripps Memorial Hospital Encinitas was recognized for high performance in gastroenterology and geriatrics. 

“Our national ranking for heart care supports our vision to build the world’s finest cardiovascular institute right here in San Diego, continuing to providing the best in heart care for our community,” said Chris Van 

Gorder, Scripps president and CEO. “The numerous metro rankings are a testament to the consistent, high-

quality care we provide across our system. We owe these accolades to the incredible dedication and talent of our hospitals’ staff and physicians.”

In each specialty in which a hospital was a candidate for national ranking it received a score from 0 to 100 that was based on four elements: reputation, patient survival, patient safety and care-related factors such as nursing and patient services. The top 50 hospitals were then ranked. To be included in the metro area rankings a hospital must score in the top 25 percent among its peers in at least one of the 16 medical specialties. The metro rankings add 587 high-performing hospitals to the 140 nationally ranked Best Hospitals.

Founded in 1924 by philanthropist Ellen Browning Scripps, Scripps Health is a $2.3 billion nonprofit integrated health system based in San Diego, Calif. Scripps treats a half-million patients annually through the dedication of 2,600 affiliated physicians and 13,000 employees among its five acute-care hospital campuses, home health care services, and an ambulatory care network of physician offices and 23 outpatient centers and clinics. 

Recognized as a leader in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, Scripps is also at the forefront of clinical research, genomic medicine, wireless health care and graduate medical education. With three highly respected graduate medical education programs, Scripps is a longstanding member of the Association of American Medical Colleges. More information can be found at www.scripps.org.

I’m happy to announce that, once again, Scripps Health has been recognized by U.S. News & World Report for quality care both regionally and nationally.  

The magazine’s “Best Hospitals” ranking has again listed the combined heart programs of Scripps Green and Scripps La Jolla among the best in the nation for cardiology and heart surgery. In addition, all four of our hospitals were collectively recognized within the San Diego area in 12 specialties, taking into consideration reputation, patient survival, patient safety and care-related factors like nursing and patient services.

I can’t say too much about these rankings.  While we are only beginning construction on the cardiovascular institute, this national ranking for the second consecutive year is recognition of the hard work that has already been done in bringing our cardiovascular teams together, along with Kaiser Permanente, to provide the best cardiac care for our patients.

Regionally, our hospitals were also recognized in the areas of cancer; cardiology and cardiac surgery; diabetes and endocrinology; ear, nose and throat; gastroenterology; geriatrics; gynecology;  kidney disorders; neurology and neurosurgery; orthopedics; pulmonology and urology.

I want to thank everyone for the hard work you do on a daily basis to ensure we deliver the best care to our patients.  While it’s always nice to be recognized publicly in listings like this one, it’s the care we provide every day that gains us this recognition and sets us apart when people seek health care for themselves or their family. 

If you would like more information on the U.S. News & World Report rankings, I’ve attached a copy of our press release with more details.  You can also read more on the U.S. News & World Report website at http://health.usnews.com/best-hospitals/rankings.

Congratulations on a job well done!