Located in Cleveland, Ohio, Cleveland Clinic is a nonprofit, multispecialty academic medical center that integrates clinical and hospital care with research and education. Cleveland Clinic was founded in 1921 by four renowned physicians with a vision of providing outstanding patient care based upon the principles of cooperation, compassion and innovation. Today, with more than 1,300 beds, Cleveland Clinic is one of the largest hospitals in the country.

Many major medical breakthroughs have happened at Cleveland Clinic, the most recent of which include the first kidney surgery performed through patient’s navel (2007); the nation’s first near-total face transplant (2008); and the world’s first heart/liver transplant in patient with total artificial heart (2009).

Since 2004, Cleveland Clinic has published outcomes data, volumes and innovations from our clinical areas. Updated annually, the Outcomes books highlight statistics for particular procedures and conditions, along with other key data. Books are distributed to physicians nationally and are available at clevelandclinic.org/quality/outcomes.

Patients travel to Cleveland Clinic from across the United States and from more than 80 countries around the world seeking excellence in medical care. In 2009, we recorded 3.7 million patient visits and 79,899 surgical cases. We consistently are ranked among the top hospitals in America by U.S.News & World Report, and our heart and heart surgery program has been ranked No. 1 since 1995.