Cleveland Clinic

The Cleveland Clinic (formally known as the Cleveland Clinic Foundation) is a multispecialty academic medical center located in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. Currently regarded as one of the top hospitals in the United States, the Cleveland Clinic was established in 1921 by four physicians for the purpose of providing patient care, research, and medical education in an ideal medical setting. One of the largest private medical centers in the world, the Cleveland Clinic saw more than 2,800,000 patient visits in 2005, with almost 70,000 hospital admissions.Patients arrive at the Cleveland Clinic from all 50 states and more than 100 nations. The Cleveland Clinic’s approximately 1,700 salaried staff physicians represent 120 medical specialties and subspecialties and is ranked among the top four hospitals in America.The Cleveland Clinic has ranked number one in America for cardiac care for 15 years in a row.

History

The Cleveland Clinic was founded in February 1921 by four renowned Cleveland physicians. Three of the founders, George Washington Crile, Frank Bunts, and William Lower, were surgeons who had worked together in an army medical unit in France during World War I.

Upon their return to the United States, they desired to establish a group practice and invited an internist, John Phillips, to join in their endeavor. The concept of group practice in medicine was relatively new at the time. Only the Mayo Clinic and military units were known to follow this model. The founders established the Clinic with the vision: “Better care of the sick, investigation of their problems, and further education of those who serve.” Dr. Crile was a surgeon of national prominence and attracted patients from around the country, especially for his expertise in thyroid surgery. The Clinic saw rapid growth in its early years but suffered a major setback in 1929 that almost closed its doors permanently. On May 15, 1929, a fire started in the basement of the hospital caused by nitrocellulose x-ray film that spontaneously ignited. The fire claimed 123 lives, including that of one of the founders, Dr. Phillips. Following this fire and the subsequent Great Depression, the Cleveland Clinic regained momentum and eventually obtained national recognition especially in cardiovascular disease. In the decades since World War II, the Clinic has grown to become internationally prominent and is currently the second-largest medical group practice in the world, after the Mayo Clinic.

Rankings and achievements

The Cleveland Clinic is ranked among the top three hospitals in America (U.S. News & World Report, 2009). The Cleveland Clinic has ranked number one in America for cardiac care for 14 years in a row. The urology, gastroenterology and rheumatology departments are ranked among the top two in the nation. The Clinic's Glickman Urological Institute has the largest full-time urology faculty in the United States.

Altogether, thirteen specialties at the Cleveland Clinic were ranked among the best in the nation by U.S. News & World Report in 2009: heart (cardiology) and cardiac surgery

1) digestive disorders (gastroenterology)

2) urology ; rheumatology ; orthopedic surgery

3) nephrology

4) respiratory disorders (pulmonology)

5) neurology and neurosurgery

6) endocrinology (#6); gynaecology

8) ophthalmology

11) otolaryngology ; cancer (oncology)

13) geriatrics

14) physical medicine and rehabilitation

19) and psychiatry

In 2007, Steven Nissen, MD, Chairman of the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world (Time 100) by Time.