Best Children's Hospital

The California Legislature recently passed a law conferring special recognition on the staff of the pediatric units at UCSF Medical Center for running a "hospital within a hospital." The children's hospital features medical support programs such as Child Life Services, which works with the entire family to prepare it for the traumas of surgery, chemotherapy, and, especially, getting stuck with needles, a seemingly small event that is greatly feared by many children, even in the terminal stages of their illnesses. A full-time teacher serves the educational needs of the 60 patients who, at any one time, are being treated for cancer, heart disease, brain tumors, strokes, and injuries. Children come from all over the west for the special medical care provided by the cheerful staff, which is also engaged in cutting-edge research on many childhood illnesses.