U.S. News & World Report (USNWR) recently ranked UAB Hospital as the best hospital in Alabama, naming several of its specialties as top-ranking in the nation as well. Of the rankings, UAB Hospital’s diabetes and endocrinology specialty came in as number 39 in the nation.
Faculty and staff in the UAB Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism play a key role in the clinical ranking of the endocrinology and diabetes specialty. The ranking criteria includes hospital volume, nurse staffing and other resources that define the hospital environment.
Many members of the UAB Comprehensive Diabetes Center (UCDC) are appointed within the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism. While the USNWR ranking is largely clinically-focused, patients’ experiences and outcomes are supported by the translation of UCDC research findings into the division’s clinics.
Director of the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism, Professor Fernando Ovalle, M.D., is also an associate director of the UCDC, further supporting a strong bridge between scientists and clinicians.
“This ranking is a testament to the incredibly dedicated faculty and staff that take care of our patients with diabetes and other endocrinology disorders,” said Ovalle. “From our schedulers to our nurses to our admin to our providers, I want to thank each of you for making our UAB one of the best places in the nation to treat diabetes and endocrinology disorders.”
UCDC Director Anath Shalev, M.D., is grateful for the work and dedication of the clinicians as well as the researchers in the UCDC who are devoted to finding curative therapies for diabetes.
“The UCDC is proud to support the incredible work of the UAB Diabetes Clinic,” said Shalev. “Our hope is that our research can continue to benefit the clinical excellence of our diabetes care providers here at UAB.”
In total, U.S. News notes that it ranks hospitals in 15 areas of complex specialty care. According to USNWR, ratings and rankings are based on each hospital's patient outcomes – that is, how well patients have fared after treatment – as well as other factors that matter to patients, like the quality of their experience and whether the hospital is adequately staffed.
The UCDC is a University-Wide Interdisciplinary Research Center comprised of over 200 faculty members from 10 different schools and many different departments. It also serves as the umbrella for various research programs and awards; including the prestigious P30 Diabetes Research Center (DRC) and several research core facilities.