Originally posted by BlueJayBill
It's like me saying Harvard is better because of its placement in Ortho and Neurosurgery (in which Harvard has a clear edge..despite the fame of Carson)
Overall, Hopkins hospital is better across the board than any of Harvards' affiliates. Lets look at the US News list:
Cancer: Hopkins #3, Harvard #4
GI: Hopkins #3, Harvard #4
ENT: Hopkins #1, Harvard #2
Optho: Hopkins #1, Harvard, #4
Geriatrics: Hopkins #2, Harvard #4
Ob/gyn: Hopkins #1, Harvard #3
Cardiology/CT surgery: Harvard #3, Hopkins #6
Endocrinology: Harvard #2, Hopkins #3
Nephrology: Harvard #1, Hopkins #4
Neurology/Neurosurgery: Harvard #2, Hopkins #3
Orthopedics: Harvard #3, Hopkins #4
Pediatrics: Harvard #2, Hopkins #3
Psychiatry: Harvard #1, Hopkins #3
PM&R: Harvard #9, Hopkins #12
Pulmonology: Hopkins #3, Harvard #5
Rheumatology: Hopkins #2, Harvard #7
Urology: Hopkins #1, Harvard #6
Harvard does have a slight edge in ortho and neurosurg, but to declare it as a "clear edge" is ridiculous. Likewise, Hopkins edge over Harvard in the other specialties is in most cases pretty slight.
That gives the following average ranks:
Hopkins: 3.23
Harvard: 3.64
Harvard leads in 8 of 17 specialties, whereas Hopkins leads in 9 of 17--pretty close.
In addition, on the honor roll list, Hopkins has 32 points in 16 specialties, whereas the best harvard hospital only has 24 points in 12 specialties
When you adjust for population and size (Boston metro area is almost 10X larger than Baltimore) it makes Hopkins look even better. Due to the much larger population in Boston, and the fact that every single hospital in the city is aligned with Harvard (except for Tufts medical center, and BostonU med center), Harvard should be kicking Hopkins ass in the hospital department. The fact that Hopkins as a whole leads Harvard is very interesting.
All of the home hospital talk is relatively meaningless because a home institution gives a strong preference to its own students..
Thats just as true at Harvard as it is at Hopkins, therefore it is irrelevant to this discussion.
PS -- According to US News, Havard as a whole offers better IM, Peds, etc than Hopkins (Hospital is not directly equal to residency program..) And.. Hopkins faculty tell me that the Harvard programs are a bit stronger in those main fields..
Pediatrics? a slight edge to Harvard.
Internal Medicine? No freaking way! Every IM doctor worth his salt will tell you that Hopkins is the nations leading IM department.
Anybody who told you differently doesnt know what the hell they are talking about.
While we're at it though... I talked to 4 Harvard docs who all said that Hopkins hospital is the best in the world and beats Harvard hands down. Dont you just love personal anecdotes?
Please give me the names of the Hopkins faculty you spoke with so we can give them the public shame and humiliation they deserve for making such stupid comments.
Whoever says your school doesn't matter at all is lying through their teeth. 
