The U.S. News & World Report ranked Emory University Hospital and Emory University Hospital Midtown first and fourth, respectively, among all metropolitan hospitals in Atlanta. This is the first year hospitals have been ranked in their respective metropolitan areas.

All 4,852 hospitals across the U.S. were considered during the selection of the rankings and were placed by a hospital’s number of nationally ranked specialties.

Hospitals were then placed based on the specialties in which they ranked within the top 25 percent nationally.

Of the 25 percent, hospitals located in metropolitan areas with populations of at least 1 million were compared with others in the area.

“It’s the quality of our people that delivers the superb quality care that our patients expect and deserve,” President and CEO of Emory Healthcare John Fox said.

The “Best Hospitals” rankings began more than 20 years ago to recognize and identify hospitals capable of handling difficult procedural cases such as brain tumors, pancreatic procedures and other conditions typically considered inoperable, the press release said.

Emory University Hospital is one of the 152 of the nation’s hospitals ranked in every single specialty.

Of those 152, Emory is ranked in 11 of the 16 possible specialties, while most of its peer hospitals are ranked in just a few specialties. According to a March 30 University press release, Emory University Hospital is consistently among the top hospitals in the U.S. News & World Report’s annual guide to America’s Best Hospitals.

Fox said that while Emory Healthcare takes pride in being recognized for the care it provides, the rankings aren’t what drives the “men and women who get up each and every day and work around the clock to provide the best possible medical care that they can.”

“Going forward, it’s our internal standards that mean the most to our staff and to our patients,” Fox said. “You set a high standard and true success comes from working within any organization as a real team.”

— Contact Alice Chen.