The Regional Kidney Stone Center at Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center is the region’s premier facility for the evaluation and treatment of kidney stones and related urological conditions.
Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center (PVHMC) has been ranked as a top hospital in gynecology and nephrology (kidney disease) in the Los Angeles Metro Area in U.S. News Media & World Report’s 2011-12 Best Hospitals [1] rankings, available online at www.usnews.com/besthospitals [2]. The rankings, annually published by U.S. News for the past 22 years, will also be featured in the U.S. News Best Hospitals guidebook, which will go on sale August 30.
The latest rankings showcase 720 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. PVHMC has been ranked in the Los Angeles metro area.
“U.S. News has long been respected as a resource in guiding people to highly ranked hospitals and medical centers that perform safe, high-quality and leading-edge medical care. To be ranked amongst these worthy hospitals, for the first time, is an honor for Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center and a benefit for our patients,” said PVHMC President/CEO Richard E. Yochum. “We have raised the bar for the quality of care provided for patients in need of nephrology services and for women in need of gynecological care. We’re honored by these two distinctions and welcome patients from throughout the Los Angeles basin and beyond in need of these services.
The core mission of Best Hospitals is to help guide patients who need an especially high level of care because of a difficult surgery, a challenging condition, or added risk because of other health problems or
age. “These are referral centers where other hospitals send their sickest patients,” said Avery Comarow, U.S. News Health Rankings Editor. “Hospitals like these are ones you or those close to you should consider when the stakes are high.”
Covering 94 metro areas in the U.S., the regional hospital rankings [3] 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.
“These are hospitals we call ‘high performers.’ They are fully capable of giving most patients first-rate care, even if they have serious conditions or need demanding procedures,” Comarow said. “Almost every major metro area has at least one of these hospitals.”
“This is an incredible honor for Pomona Valley Hospital. I couldn’t be more proud to be a part of the Hospital’s gynecology department, especially with the support they have given us over the past five years with the da Vinci Surgical Robot Program for hysterectomies,” said Dr. Simmi Dhaliwal, OB/GYN. “This technique has improved the gynecology program and has allowed us to provide excellent care to our female patients with minimally invasive surgery.”
“It is gratifying for our hospital to be so recognized,” said Dr. Victor Pappoe, nephrologist. “This validates the close working relationship of our nephrologists and dedicated dialysis nurses in caring for our patients.”
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.
The rankings cover 16 medical specialties and all 94 metro areas that have at least 500,000 residents and at least one hospital that performed well enough to be ranked.