Hackensack University Medical Center is ranked number one in New Jersey for nine specialty areas according to a report released today by HealthGrades, the nation’s most trusted, independent source of physician information and hospital quality outcomes. Hackensack University Medical Center is ranked best in New Jersey for:

• Orthopedic Surgery, which includes joint and spine surgery
• Joint Replacement Surgery such as total hip replacements
• Neurosurgery, including operations such as craniotomies and aneurysm repairs
• Neurosciences, which includes the care of stroke patients
• Pulmonary Care, which includes the care of pneumonia patients
• Critical Care which includes treating high acuity patients with diagnoses such as sepsis (infection of the blood) and respiratory failure
• Overall Gastrointestinal Care
• Medical Treatment of Gastrointestinal Issues such as bowel obstruction
• Prostatectomy

According to the report, patients in the New York Designated Market Area® are increasingly seeking such quality information online, with 31 percent of area residents visiting HealthGrades.com in the past year. And for good reason: Choosing a hospital can be a life or death decision. A quality comparison of doctors and hospitals in area can be found online at HealthGrades.com at: www.topcities.healthgrades.com/ratings/newyork-ny.

“We have always been of the mindset that partnering with our patients in their healthcare leads to the greatest outcomes,” said Robert C. Garrett, president and chief executive officer at Hackensack University Medical Center. “It’s encouraging to know that a resource likes HealthGrades exists for community members to access the kind of proven quality care offered at Hackensack University Medical Center, as indicated by these most recent accolades.”

HealthGrades Healthcare Consumerism and Hospital Quality in America report found that patients treated at 5-star rated hospitals experience a 73% lower risk of mortality and a 63% lower risk of complications. Hackensack University Medical Center is five-star rated in the following procedures and diagnoses:

• Coronary Bypass Surgery
• Coronary Interventional Procedures
• Treatment of Heart Attack
• Treatment of Heart Failure
• Stroke care
• Neurosurgery
• Treatment of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
• Treatment of Pneumonia
• Treatment of Respiratory Failure
• Treatment of Sepsis (infection of blood stream)
• Gastrointestinal Surgeries and Procedures such as small and large intestine resections
• Treatment of Bowel Obstruction
• Treatment of Gastrointestinal Bleed
• Total Knee Replacement Surgery
• Total Hip Replacement Surgery
• Hip Fracture Treatment
• Spinal Fusion Surgery
• Prostatectomy Surgery

  Additional key findings from HealthGrades report include:

• In an online survey, 80 percent said they are very or somewhat concerned about the quality of hospital care in their community.
• The New York Designated Market Area rated 1-star overall for quality in several specialty areas including stroke, neurosurgery, heart attack, heart failure, pulmonary care, critical care and GI care, while Hackensack University Medical Center is 5-star-rated in all of these specialty areas.
• If all Medicare patients from 2008 through 2010 had been treated at 5-star hospitals, 240,040 lives could have potentially been saved.  

About Hackensack University Medical Center
Hackensack University Medical Center is a 775-bed not-for-profit, tertiary care, teaching and research hospital and provides the largest number of admissions in New Jersey. Founded in 1888 with 12 beds and as Bergen County's first hospital, Hackensack University Medical Center has demonstrated more than a century of growth and progress. Hackensack University Medical Center is a nationally recognized healthcare organization offering patients the most comprehensive services, state-of-the-art technologies, and facilities. Honors include being named one of America’s 50 Best Hospitals by HealthGrades® for five years in a row. Hackensack University Medical Center is the only hospital in New Jersey, New York, and New England to receive this honor for five consecutive years. Hackensack University Medical Center was also named one of the 50 Best Hospitals in America by Becker's Hospital Review. U.S. News & World Report ranked Hackensack University Medical Center eighth in the New York Metro Area in its first-ever Best Hospitals metro area rankings, giving it the top ranking out of all the New Jersey hospitals listed. Additionally, Hackensack University Medical Center has been ranked in geriatrics, heart and heart surgery, and cancer in U.S. News & World Report's 2011-12 Best Hospitals.  The U.S. News Media Group also named the Joseph M. Sanzari Children’s Hospital to its “2011-12 Best Children’s Hospitals” list – ranking as one of the top 50 in the specialty of neurology and neurosurgery – the first hospital in the State of New Jersey ever to be ranked in a Best Children’s Hospitals specialty. Hackensack University Medical Center is a Magnet® recognized hospital for nursing excellence, first in New Jersey, second in the nation, receiving its fourth designation in April 2009. Hackensack University Medical Center is the hometown hospital of the New York Giants and the New Jersey Nets.