"This #1 ranking is a reflection of our commitment to excellence, whether it's the care team by the bedside or our research team at the bench-side, we are driven by the need to advance pediatric care," says James Mandell M.D., Children's Hospital's president and chief executive officer. "Our mission at Children's is to provide the best care by staffing the hospital with professionals who are trained to handle the most difficult medical conditions and are among the nations very best."

The annual issue of the magazine assesses care in 17 specialties at hospitals across the country, 168 of which scored high enough to be ranked. The rankings were devised in conjunction with the National Opinion Research Center (NORC), a noted social-science research group at the University of Chicago. Rankings in four of the 17 specialties, including pediatrics, are based solely on reputational surveys. To determine the reputational scores, NORC mailed questionnaires to a geographic cross-section of 150 board-certified physicians in each of 17 specialties. These doctors were randomly selected from the American Medical Association's database of AMA members and non-members. NORC asked the physicians to name the five hospitals they consider to be the best in their specialty.

According to U.S. News & World Report, the purpose of the "America's Best Hospitals" issue is to assist people seeking the highest level of skills in diagnosing, treating, or managing a difficult medical condition. Any institution listed among the top in any specialty should be considered a leading center.