Duke Medical Center ranked no. 10

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Of the nearly 5,000 hospitals considered by the U.S. News and World Report, Duke University Medical Center ranked 10th. Its top 10 finish is DUMC's 21st in a row—or every year since the magazine began the rankings.

"No matter how skilled or deep their expertise, even 'best hospitals' don't do everything right," the U.S. News and World Report's website notes. "But when high stakes call for unusual capabilities, they are hospitals that can save lives that might be lost or preserve quality of life that might be sacrificed."

Fourteen hospitals, including DUMC, were included on the "honor roll" of the list:

The Honor Roll requirements were so stiff that 99.7 percent of all centers in the nation were excluded. A hospital had to be ranked in at least six specialties, but ranking alone was insufficient for inclusion. It also had to have an extremely high score (in statisticians' terms, at least 3 standard deviations above the mean). That earned 1 point per specialty. Reaching the top of the Honor Roll called for even higher scores (4 or more standard deviations above the mean), earning 2 points, in far more specialties

DUMC was ranked in the top 10 in seven specialties, achieving its highest rank in geriatrics, at number six.

The medical center is ranked immediately above Brigham and Women's Hospital and just below the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. Johns Hopkins is ranked 1st on the list, just as it has been for the past 20 years.

For a more detailed listing of Duke's rankings in individual specialties rankings, click here.