DURHAM, N.C. -- U.S. News & World Report has ranked Duke Children’s Hospital among the top 50 children’s medical centers nationally in nine of 10 specialties that comprise the magazine’s analysis.

“Duke Children’s team was the highest ranked children’s hospital in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia,” said Thomas Owens, M.D., president of Duke University Hospital. “While we are pleased to receive this honor, our priorities will continue to be to provide the very best care to children in need, to teach the next generation of clinicians, nurses, and caregivers, and to conduct meaningful research that contributes to treatments and cures to help children.”

According to U.S. News, hospitals were ranked on how well they performed in three broad areas of quality: clinical outcomes; efficient coordination of care in compliance with accepted "best practices"; and providing sufficient care-related resources such as nursing staff and outpatient programs tailored to particular conditions. Each of those major areas determined about one-third of a hospital's score in each specialty.

Additionally, results from a survey of pediatric specialists contributed up to 15 percent of a hospital's score, depending on specialty.

Duke Children’s ranked in the top 50 in the following specialties:

•    Cancer (26)
•    Diabetes and endocrinology (38)
•    Gastroenterology and GI surgery (25)
•    Neonatology (20)
•    Nephrology (21)
•    Neurology and neurosurgery (46)
•    Orthopedics (43)
•    Pulmonology and lung surgery (36)
•    Urology (26)

“We are proud and honored to be ranked by U.S. News & World Report in nine programmatic areas,” said Ann Reed, M.D., chair of the Duke Department of Pediatrics and physician-in-chief of Duke Children’s. “I firmly believe this distinction reflects the high-quality care we deliver and our outstanding commitment to our patients and their families.”