Simply the best

The UF Health Shands Children’s Hospital has been recognized as one of the nation’s best hospitals for children in nine medical specialties, according to the 2016 U.S. News & World Report Best Children’s Hospitals rankings. UF Health’s pediatric programs were the most-recognized in the state, and seven of the nine were the highest-ranked in Florida. Two UF Health specialties were new to the list this year — neurology and neurosurgery (46th) and urology (40th). They join seven other pediatric specialties that were also ranked last year: diabetes and endocrinology (tied for 18th), cancer (22nd), neonatology (23rd), cardiology and heart surgery (24th), pulmonology (27th), nephrology (tied for 32nd) and gastroenterology and gastrointestinal surgery (40th). Six of the seven departments improved their standings from 2015. — Doug Bennett