Calif. Counties, Hospitals Among Best in U.S. for Kids’ Health, Reports Say
Several California counties were listed among the 50 healthiest counties for children in the U.S., according to an analysis by U.S. News & World Report.
Details of Rankings
The rankings were developed with help from the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute, which analyzes U.S. health data as part of its County Health Rankings and Roadmaps program.
Researchers evaluated 1,200 of the nation's 3,143 counties.
The rankings highlighted counties with lower rates of:
- Child poverty;
- Deaths from injuries;
- Infant deaths;
- Low-birth-rate infants; and
- Teen births.
California Counties Highlighted
Eleven California counties were listed among the nation's 50 healthiest counties for children, including:
- Marin, which ranked first;
- San Francisco, which ranked second;
- San Mateo, which ranked ninth;Â
- Placer, which ranked 11th;
- Santa Clara, which ranked 19th;
- Yolo, which ranked 24th;
- Santa Cruz, which ranked 31st;
- Orange, which ranked 36th;
- Alameda, which ranked 37th;
- San Luis Obispo, which ranked 45th; and
- Sonoma, which ranked 49th (Sternberg, U.S. News & World Report, 6/11).
Report on Top Children's Hospitals
In related news, U.S. News & World Report also released its seventh annual Best Children's Hospitals report, which examined performance in several areas of care.
Among the top-ranking hospitals are several California facilities, including:
- Children's Hospital Los Angeles, which ranked fourth for cancer care, fourth for orthopedics, fifth for diabetes and endocrinology, seventh for cardiology and heart surgery and eighth for neonatal care;
- Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford, which ranked fifth for nephrology, seventh for neonatal care and ninth for cardiology and heart surgery;
- Mattel Children's Hospital UCLA, which ranked eighth for nephrology; and
- Rady Children's Hospital in San Diego, which ranked seventh for orthopedics and 10th for urology (Leonard, U.S. News & World Report, 6/11).