Cleveland Clinic Children’s 2020-2021 U.S. News Rankings: Innovations, Patient Stories and Experts

For the 12th consecutive year, Cleveland Clinic Children’s is ranked among the nation’s top 50 hospitals.

Cleveland Clinic Children’s – an integral part of Cleveland Clinic, which was ranked as the nation’s No.4 hospital in 2019 by U.S. News – earned national recognition in 10 specialties.

Cleveland Clinic has cared for infants, children, and adolescents since its doors first opened in 1921. That history of pediatric caregiving has blossomed into Cleveland Clinic Children’s, standing today as one of America’s leading and largest providers of comprehensive pediatric care. Now, it’s more than 300 pediatricians, practitioners and specialists – and more than 50 outpatient sites – provide the full spectrum of primary, specialty, and sub-specialty care to the largest patient population of any children’s hospital in Northeast Ohio.

Note: This video was taken before the COVID-19 pandemic. We now follow protocols (including social distancing and masking) to protect our patients and caregivers.

Innovations & Inspiring Patient Stories

Surgery on Baby In Womb Repairs Spina Bifida Before Birth
Doctors diagnosed Justin and Kimmie McCaw’s unborn son with a severe case of spina bifida in June 2019. They were devastated when doctors in their hometown (near Tulsa, OK) and doctors in Texas couldn’t do anything to stop it from progressing. Without interventional treatment, their son could have paralysis, brain damage, seizures or blindness. Justin reached out to doctors at Cleveland Clinic for a second opinion. Two hours after receiving Kimmie’s medical scans, Dr. Darrell Cass, called Justin and said he could perform the procedure to help repair spina bifida. The surgery reversed the brain damage that presented itself before the procedure, and the back of Tyler’s brain returned to normal.

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Baby Born With Severe Heart Defect Thrives After Three Heart Procedures
Not yet 1 day old, Carson faced an uncertain future. Doctors diagnosed him with a severe congenital heart defect called aortic stenosis. He underwent three heart procedures by the time he was 3 months old, including a very intricate operation rarely performed on a patient as young as Carson.

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12-Year-Old Boy Survives Cancer Found in One Percent of Kids
Doctors diagnosed Owen with a type of cancer found in 1% of kids, non-Hodgkin anaplastic large cell lymphoma. He endured at nearly five-month-long chemotherapy regimen. Within a year, he went into remission. Today he is cancer-free and helping other kids and adults going through a similar journey.

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Boy Bravely Battles Leukemia While Learning to Live with Autism
At 3-years-old, Simon Ziemba has fought cancer and achieved amazing milestones working through his autism diagnosis. While he still has a long road ahead, his teachers, at the Lerner School for Autism, and parents are nothing short of amazed at his progress.

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Research & Highlights

Delaying Newborn Baths Increase Rates of Breastfeeding
While it has been standard practice for decades to whisk newborns off to a bath within the first few hours of their birth, a new Cleveland Clinic study found that waiting to bathe a healthy newborn 12 or more hours after birth increased the rate of breastfeeding exclusivity during the newborn hospital stay.

Analysis of Online Conversations Looks into Epilepsy-Suicide Links
Suicide accounts for 32% of deaths among patients with epilepsy. A large data-mining study shows digital conversations provide a needed emotional outlet for teens and adults coping with epilepsy.

Cleveland Clinic Children’s Welcomes Its First Canine Caregiver
In 2020, Cleveland Clinic Children’s welcomed its first ever canine caregiver. As a member of our Child Life team, Kid lifts the spirits of our little patients and their families.