Health Care
Need to see a doctor? You’ve come to the right place. Houston is home to dozens of hospitals and urgent-care facilities—many of which are so good that people travel from across the globe to receive treatment. Hospitals here conduct groundbreaking medical research and surgeries time and again, consistently earning them recognition as top hospitals in the country—and the world.
Overview
Most of Houston’s best hospitals are located in the Texas Medical Center, the world’s largest medical complex. Located inside the Loop near Hermann Park, this 1,000-acre medical complex is home to 14 renowned hospitals and two specialty institutions, three medical schools, six nursing schools, and schools of dentistry, public health, pharmacy, and most other health-related professions.
Together, hospitals in the Medical Center perform more heart surgeries than any other place in the world. The Texas Medical Center isn’t just a leader in cardiology, though. Other top-ranked specialties here include cancer, pediatric care, woman’s health, urology, gastroenterology, endocrinology, psychiatry, and neurology. The Medical Center is also home to two level-one trauma centers.
While the Medical Center is the center of Houston’s medical universe, it’s hardly the only place to receive great medical care in Houston. Many hospitals in the Texas Medical Center now have satellites in the suburbs and other parts of Houston. A sampling of some of the city’s best hospitals can be found in this chapter.
1. Health and Human Services Department
City: Houston, TX
Category: Health Care
Telephone: (832) 393-5169
Address: 8000 N. Stadium Dr.
Description: The Houston Department of Health and Human Services works with the community and health-care providers to promote good health and health services among Houstonians. In particular, the department’s programs seek to help prevent communicable diseases like the flu, HIV, and H1N1 (swine flu). The department also leads public health programs; monitors environmental conditions, such as air quality and allergens; oversees animal control; and inspects local restaurants and food establishments. To help Houstonians access to quality health care, the Health and Human Services Department operates preventative-care clinics and primary-care clinics for low-income residents. For a list of clinics, call the department or visit houstontx.gov/health/HealthCenters.
City: Houston, TX
Category: Health Care
Address: 6411 Fannin (Medical Center)
3. Memorial Hermann Hospital
City: Houston, TX
Category: Health Care
Telephone: (713) 704-4000
Address: 6411 Fannin (Medical Center)
Description: With 11 hospitals around the Houston area, Memorial Hermann Hospital is Texas’s largest hospital system. And in 2012, it was named one of the top 15 health systems in the country by Thompson Reuters. Anchored by its Texas Medical Center campus, the system operates the country’s busiest level-one trauma center, 8 cancer centers, 3 heart institutes, 27 sports medicine and rehabilitation centers, a substance abuse treatment center, 21 patient imaging centers, 8 breast care centers, 25 sports medicine and rehabilitation centers, 10 surgery centers, a substance abuse treatment center, the Life Flight air ambulance program, Houston’s only burn treatment center, a children’s hospital, and a neuroscience institute. Visit the website to find additional hospitals and specialty facilities.
4. Methodist Hospital
City: Houston, TX
Category: Health Care
Telephone: (713) 790-3311
Address: 6565 Fannin St. (Medical Center)
Description: Anchored by its Texas Medical Center campus, the renowned Methodist Hospital system is known for groundbreaking research in areas ranging from transplants to heart attack diagnosis time to cancer treatment to genetic therapy to brain aneurysm repair. Methodist is perhaps best known for its excellence in breast health, cardiology, neuroscience, orthopedics, and cancer treatment. The Medical Center location has 864 beds; the entire system has 1,561. Visit the website for locations.
5. St. Joseph Medical Center
City: Houston, TX
Category: Health Care
Telephone: (713) 757-1000
Address: 1401 St. Joseph Pkwy. (Downtown)
Description: When it opened in 1887, St. Joseph Medical Center was Houston’s first hospital. Today it provides comprehensive medical and surgical care, including neonatal and pediatric care, women’s care and baby delivery, behavioral care, intensive care, neurosurgery, orthopedics, and diabetes management. St. Joseph also has a level III emergency department. This teaching hospital has 420 beds and is staffed by more than 600 board-certified physicians.
City: Houston, TX
Category: Health Care
Address: 1317 Lake Pointe Pkwy. (Sugar Land)
City: Houston, TX
Category: Health Care
Address: 18200 Katy Fwy. at Barker Cypress (West
City: Houston, TX
Category: Health Care
Address: 1515 Holcombe Blvd. (Medical Center)
9. The Woman’s Hospital of Texas
City: Houston, TX
Category: Health Care
Telephone: (713) 790-1234
Address: 7600 Fannin (Medical Center)
Description: Since opening in 1976, The Woman’s Hospital has been the state’s leading hospital dedicated solely to the care of women and newborn infants. The Woman’s Hospital of Texas specializes in gynecology, regular obstetrical care, high-risk pregnancies, and minimally invasive surgery. The hospital, which delivers more babies than any other hospital in Harris County, is renowned for its Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and its exceptional success rate with babies weighing 1,500 grams or less at birth. Thanks to a recent 145,000-square-foot expansion, The Woman’s Hospital now has 397 beds and 36 labor and delivery rooms. The Woman’s Hospital has a network of six neighborhood physician satellite offices called The Woman’s Place; call or visit the website to find the nearest location.