Here's what Houston hospitals ranked as best in the nation this year

best of the rest

U.S. News & World Report has released its annual and much-heralded list of Best Hospitals in the nation. Photo courtesy

A prestigious, annual national report has verified what Houstonians already know: Our Medical Center boasts the best adult and children’s hospital in Texas and the best cancer center in America.

U.S. News & World Report released its 2022-23 Best Hospitals list, which names The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center No. 1 in the nation for cancer care. For those keeping track, MD Anderson has been considered in the top two cancer hospitals in the U.S. since the U.S. News launched the survey in 1990.

While securing the top rank for cancer care, MD Anderson also scored high national ranks for specialty treatments: urology (No. 5) and diabetes and endocrinology (No. 13). The center continues to maintain its “High Performing” rating on the U.S. News list for colon cancer and lung cancer. It also received “High Performing” ratings for the three newly added adult procedures and conditions: ovarian cancer, prostate cancer, and uterine cancer, per a press release.

“We are proud to be ranked as the nation’s leader in cancer care,” said Peter WT Pisters, M.D., president of MD Anderson, in a statement. “This ongoing recognition is thanks to the incredible MD Anderson community, including our faculty, employees, trainees, students, donors and advocates, who advance our science and our mission and who serve our patients by enabling us to provide the best care possible.”

Rankings for the annual U.S. News study are based on scores in patient care, patient safety, outcomes, nursing, advanced technology, and reputation.

Houston leads medicine in Texas
The tagline for Houston Methodist Hospital systems — “leading medicine” — is quite fitting here in Texas. The hospital comes in at No. 15 nationally (marking the sixth time it has been recognized in the report’s Honor Roll) and No. 1 in Texas for the 11th year in a row. Locally, Houston Methodist Sugar Land ranks No. 5 in Houston and No. in Texas, a press release notes.

Notably, U.S. News has ranked Houston Methodist Hospital in at least one specialty for the past 30 years. This year, Houston Methodist Hospital ranks in 10 specialties, the most of any hospital in the state, according to the report. Two of these ranked specialties appear in the list’s top 10 (diabetes and endocrinology at No. 9; gastroenterology/GI surgery at No. 8), while six are ranked in the top 20.

“This is a tremendous achievement for our physicians and employees who dedicate themselves every day to our patients – especially as we continue to provide the highest quality care during these trying times in health care,” said Marc Boom, M.D., president and CEO of Houston Methodist, in a statement. “Our mission to provide unparalleled care is for our patients, who are the reason we need to be one of the best hospital systems in the country.”

Texas Children’s tops Texas and Southwest
Yet another Houston hospital scored extremely well nationally in the list. Texas Children’s Hospital ranks No. 2 overall in the Best Children’s Hospitals ranking. The beloved children’s center also remains top in Texas and the Southwest, and at No. 1 in heart treatment for the sixth year in a row. No other pediatric hospital in Texas has achieved an overall ranking as high as Texas Children’s has in the past 14 years, a Texas Children’s release notes.

“We are beyond thrilled with the newest U.S. News & World Report rankings that place Texas Children’s Hospital second in the United States and first in the state of Texas,” said Mark A. Wallace, president and CEO, in a statement. “Consistent collaboration, newfound discoveries and extraordinary patient care is what has brought us to where we are today. I am incredibly proud of this remarkable team and everything we’ve accomplished together — and our promise to every family is that we are just getting started.”

Texas’ best mental health care is here
Also boasting top honors in the state — and No. 10 nationally — is the Menninger Clinic. The acclaimed facility tied for tenth place on U.S. News’ list of best psychiatric hospitals, making it the all-out best in Texas.

Of note, Menninger has been named a top-10 psychiatry hospital in the U.S. for 32 consecutive years, the hospital points out. “With the growing need for mental health care, we are grateful for the trust that psychiatrists have had in referring their clients to The Menninger Clinic for comprehensive diagnosis and treatment,” said president and CEO Armando E. Colombo in a statement.

Elsewhere in Texas
Dallas-Fort Worth is home to the No. 2 hospital in Texas, per U.S. News. UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas also ranked especially well nationally in urology (No. 11), cardiology and heart surgery (No. 14), diabetes and endocrinology (No. 18), pulmonology and lung surgery, (No. 21), and cancer (No. 25).

Not far down the list is Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, which ranked No. 4 in Texas. One Baylor department ranked nationally: gastroenterology and GI surgery department, No. 34.

Meanwhile, Austin’s St. David’s Medical Center ranked No. 8 in Texas. Austinites in need of post-procedure work and physical therapy should note that the hospital’s rehabilitation department ranked nationally, coming in at No. 37 overall.

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

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Through a $4 million grant, the city of Houston will be able to provide mental health treatment to at-risk students. Educational First Steps/Facebook

City of Houston and local health care organizations receive $4M to treat mental health in students

Help granted

The city of Houston just received a major opportunity to help grow access to mental health treatment in children.

Thanks to a four-year $4 million grant from the United States Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the city and its partner, Baylor College of Medicine, are launching the Be-Well Be-Connected program that provides at-risk students age six to 17 years old with mental health treatment.

The program will be led by Dr. Laurel Williams, associate professor of psychiatry at Baylor, division head for child and adolescent psychiatry and chief of psychiatry at Texas Children's Hospital. The treatment will include cognitive behavioral intervention for students with bipolar disorder and first episode psychosis, according to the release. The services will be provided in the child's home, which will ensure compliance.

"We do not have many places in Houston that have this capability to provide this level of intensity of services," Williams says in the release. "Having in-home therapy can allow the young person to stay engaged in their community and in their schools, which can promote wellness and reduction in symptoms burden more quickly."

Other Houston health centers, including Texas Children's Hospital, Harris Health System, Menninger Clinic, Harris Center, Veteran's Mental Health Care Line, Legacy Community Health Services, and DePelchin's Children's Center, will be involved with the program and the Mayor's Office of Education is the program manager of the grant.

"I created the Office of Education to support school districts in Houston because they are doing the essential work of guaranteeing that our next generation of adults is educated and ready for the future," says Mayor Sylvester Turner in the release. "The grant validates our efforts and more importantly will provide care on the frontlines of a key health issue involving young people."

Five independent school districts will also receive first level screening services and telemedical care. Families of the students receiving care will also receive support from the newly developed Texas State Child Mental Health Consortium.

"Houston and our surrounding area is primed to really take children's mental health care to the next needed level," says Williams in the release. "This SAMHSA grant opportunity coupled with the State Consortium will allow better coordination amongst services and an overall increase in available services — services that are desperately needed."

Houston Methodist Hospital once again lands on U.S. News & World Report's "Honor Roll." Courtesy of Methodist Hospital/Facebook

2 Houston hospitals honored among America's best in prestigious report

What the Doctor Ordered

Houston's Medical Center is often described as the epicenter of innovation and treatment in the U.S. — as well as the site of Nobel Prize-winning work. Now, a new report offers more bragging rights for the beloved center, as two of its hospitals have landed on a coveted list of the best facilities in the nation.

U.S. News & World Report has released its 2019-2020 list of best hospitals, citing Houston Methodist Hospital and The Menninger Clinic among the top in America.

The publication named Houston Methodist Hospital to its Honor Roll, a list of the top 20 hospitals in the country. Methodist tied for No. 20 with Yale New Haven Hospital in Connecticut, Mayo Clinic-Phoenix, and Hospitals of the University of Pennsylvania-Penn Presbyterian in Philadelphia.

To determine the Honor Roll, U.S. News ranks hospital performance in 16 areas of complex specialty care and rates hospitals in nine bellwether procedures and conditions, such as heart bypass, hip and knee replacement, heart failure, and lung cancer surgery, the publication notes.

This is the third time Methodist has secured the Honor Roll and the eighth year in a row it has been named the No. 1 hospital in Texas. Methodist also ranked No. 1 in the Gulf Coast region and was awarded national rankings in nine adult specialties and recognized as "high performing" for nine adult procedures and conditions.

Meanwhile, in the nationwide survey, The Menninger Clinic ranked No. 5 overall among Best Hospitals for Psychiatry. The institution, which offers treatment services for psychiatric disorders and substance abuse issues, has been ranked by U.S. News for 30 consecutive years, according to a release.

The report distinguishes the best hospitals for patients experiencing difficult-to-treat psychiatric disorders and is based on survey responses from 2017 to 2019 from physicians nationwide who are board certified in psychiatry, according to the publication.

During the three-year survey period, Menninger treated patients from all 50 states and 18 countries through five specialty inpatient programs, says a release. The hospital assists patients ranging from adolescents to adult professionals and hosts a popular annual luncheon featuring a celebrity keynote speaker who has dealt with mental wellness issues.

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This story originally appeared on CultureMap.com.

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Houston investment firm closes $105M energy venture fund

seeing green

Houston-based investment firm Veriten has announced the initial close of its second flagship energy venture fund with more than $105 million in capital commitments.

Fund II will build on Veriten’s initial fund and aim to support “scalable technology solutions for energy, power and industrial applications,” according to a company news release.

"Our differentiated network, research-driven process, and first principles approach to investing are having an impact across multiple verticals including traditional energy, electrification, and industrial technology. Fund II builds on that platform,” John Sommers, partner, investments at Veriten, added in the release. “In this environment, the differentiator isn't capital – it's all about connectivity, deep sector expertise, and an economically-driven approach. As new technologies and approaches develop at breakneck speed, the need for more reliable, affordable energy and power continues to grow dramatically. The current backdrop accentuates the need for Veriten's solution."

Veriten is supported by over 50 strategic partnerships in the energy, power, industrial and technology sectors, including major players like Halliburton and Phillips 66.

"Veriten continues to build a differentiated platform at the intersection of energy, technology and industry expertise," Jeff Miller, chairman and CEO of Halliburton, said in the release. "We were early believers in the team and their ability to identify practical solutions to real challenges across the energy value chain. As all industries increasingly adopt digital tools, automation and AI-enabled technologies to improve performance and execution, we are proud to partner with Veriten again to help accelerate high-impact solutions across the broader energy landscape."

Veriten closed its debut fund, NexTen LP, of $85 million in committed capital in October 2023. It was launched in January 2022 by Maynard Holt, co-founder and former CEO of the energy investment bank Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co.

It has invested in Houston-based AI-powered electricity analytics provider Amperon and led a $12 million Seed 2 funding round for Houston-based Helix Technologies to scale manufacturing of its energy-efficient commercial HVAC add-on earlier this year. In the past year it has contributed to funding rounds for San Francisco-based Armada and Calgary-based Veerum.

Veriten also named Nick Morriss as its new managing director earlier this month. Morriss most recently served as vice president of business development at next-generation nuclear technology company Natura Resources and spent nearly 20 years at NOV Inc.

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This article originally appeared on our sister site, EnergyCapitalHTX.com.

Here's how Houston ranks among the best U.S. cities to start a career

New Horizons

College graduates staying in Houston are in the right place to be, according to a new WalletHub study. Houston has emerged on a new list of the 100 best places in America for starting a career.

Houston ranked 51st out of 182 U.S. cities based on its quality of life and vast opportunities for new college graduates transitioning into the workforce. The study compared each city based on 25 relevant metrics, like the availability of entry-level jobs, each city's annual job growth rate, workforce diversity, median annual income, housing affordability, and others.

Atlanta, Orlando, and Austin respectively comprised the top three best places to start a career.

Houston ranked 48th overall for its quality of life, and appeared No. 51 for its professional opportunities for new college graduates. Whether its starting a new business or entering a high-earning job field, Houston has many more opportunities than the vast majority of other cities on the list.

"The best cities for starting a career not only have a lot of job opportunities but also provide substantial income growth potential and satisfying work conditions," said WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo. "It’s also important to consider factors such as how fun a city is to live in or how good of a place it is for raising a family, to ensure life satisfaction outside of your career."

Other Texas hotspots for early career professionals
Austin boasts the best quality of life out of all 182 cities in the report, and the 10th best professional opportunities. The state capital also outperformed all other U.S. cities with the highest monthly average starting salaries for early career workers after being adjusted for the city's cost of living. Austin also offers the 15th highest number of entry level jobs per capita, the report said.

In a separate comparison of the cities with the largest share of residents aged 25 to 34, Austin ranked No. 5 nationally.

"In addition, Austin’s median annual household income is the 10th-highest in the nation, providing strong earning potential for those starting a career or a business," the report said. "Austin is also the sixth best city for singles, offering a vibrant social scene alongside strong career opportunities for young professionals."

Elsewhere in Texas, Dallas ranked as the second-best city in Texas for new grads to start a career and 12th nationally. Additional cities that made it into the top 100 best U.S. cities for early career professionals include Plano (No. 32), Irving (No. 42), Fort Worth (No. 64), Amarillo (No. 73), and San Antonio (No. 85).

The top 10 best cities for starting a career are:

  • No. 1 – Atlanta, Georgia
  • No. 2 – Orlando, Florida
  • No. 3 – Austin, Texas
  • No. 4 – Tampa, Florida
  • No. 5 – Miami, Florida
  • No. 6 – Charleston, South Carolina
  • No. 7 – Pittsburgh
  • No. 8 – Knoxville, Tennessee
  • No. 9 – Salt Lake City, Utah
  • No. 10 – Columbia, South Carolina
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This article first appeared on CultureMap.com.

Persona AI teams with Under Armour to protect next-gen robots

Future Fabrics

Houston-based Persona AI has cemented a partnership with sportswear manufacturer Under Armour to provide materials to protect future robots operating in dangerous conditions.

Through the partnership, Persona AI and Under Armour will launch a research initiative to explore whether advanced performance textiles can improve the durability and resilience of humanoid robots operating in harsh industrial environments.

“This is an opportunity to apply our innovation expertise in a new context,” Kyle Blakely, senior vice president of innovation, design studio, development, and testing at Under Armour, said in a news release. “Robotics presents a fascinating new design challenge, and we aim to play a leading role in shaping performance solutions for these environments. As humanoid systems take on more physically demanding roles, we see real potential to create new market opportunities, and we’re exploring how concepts like thermal management, abrasion resistance, and flexibility translate beyond sport."

Founded in June 2024 by former NASA engineer Nicolaus Radford and former Figure AI CTO Jerry Pratt, Persona AI has quickly risen to be a top name in the development of humanoid robotic systems. Radford previously was the principal investigator at NASA’s Dexterous Robotics Lab before becoming CEO of Nauticus Robotics. While at NASA, he was the chief engineer behind Robotnaut 2, the first humanoid robot on the International Space Station.

Persona AI raised preseed funding to develop humanoid robots designed to operate in shipyards and other industrial sites. The company has inked partnerships with HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering, HD Hyundai Robotic, and Korean manufacturing firm Vazil Company to create and deploy humanoid robots for complex welding tasks in shipyards.

These environments often involve exposure to dangerous chemicals, harsh weather and other potential hazards. The partnership between Persona AI and Under Armour will combine the clothing manufacturer’s development of resilient but flexible materials with the humanoid design of Persona AI.

Though best known for its sportswear, Under Armour produces a wide range of specialist fabrics and clothing, including an entire line used by the U.S. military. The company’s track record of developing high-performance fabrics built to withstand war zones and desert conditions makes it a strong partner in Persona AI’s latest endeavor.

“We chose to work with Under Armour because of their track record of innovation with these types of performance materials,” Radford said. “As we develop humanoids for intense and potentially hazardous environments, this collaboration helps us understand how advanced materials can enhance long-term reliability, thereby informing solutions to better protect workers in the field.”

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