Washington D.C. –  UMass Memorial Medical Center has been given the top rank in the Worcester region for the second year in a row according to U.S. News & World Report’s 2012-13 Best Hospitals rankings, available online at www.usnews.com/besthospitals. The rankings, annually published by U.S. News for the past 23 years, will also be featured in the U.S. News Best Hospitals guidebook, which will go on sale in August.

The latest rankings showcase 730 hospitals out of about 5,000 hospitals nationwide. Each is ranked among the country’s top hospitals in at least one medical specialty and/or ranked among the best hospitals in its metro area.

UMass Memorial Medical Center was also ranked as high-performing in the following medical specialties:

• Cancer
• Diabetes & Endocrinology
• Gastroenterology
• Gynecology
• Nephrology
• Pulmonology
• Urology

“This recognition is for all of the dedicated people who make UMass Memorial the exceptional hospital it is,” said John G. O’Brien, president and CEO of UMass Memorial Health Care. “It is an honor to be chosen as the top ranked hospital in our region for a second year in a row and to be regarded as a leader in so many specialties.”

The regional hospital rankings complement the national rankings by including hospitals with solid performance nearly at the level of nationally ranked institutions. The regional rankings are aimed primarily at consumers whose care may not demand the special expertise found only at a nationally ranked Best Hospital or who may not be willing or able to travel long distances for medical care. The U.S. News metro rankings give many such patients and their families more options of hospitals within their community and in their health insurance network.

Hard numbers stand behind the rankings in most specialties—death rates, patient safety, procedure volume, and other objective data. Responses to a national survey, in which physicians were asked to name hospitals they consider best in their specialty for the toughest cases, also were factored in.

About UMass Memorial Medical Center

UMass Memorial Medical Center is the advanced tertiary care referral center for Central New England. The Medical Center offers a full complement of sophisticated technology and support services necessary to provide the region with specialists renowned for their work in areas such as cardiology, cancer, diabetes and orthopedics. To learn more about UMass Memorial, please visit www.umassmemorial.org, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

For all media inquiries contact our media relations department; email media@umassmemorial.org or call 508-793-5726.