NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital ranks first in the New York City metropolitan area and sixth in the nation, according to U.S. News Media Group's 2008 edition of America's Best Hospitals.

In April of last year, surgeons at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center made headlines by removing a women's gallbladder through her uterus using a flexible endoscope, aided by several external incisions for added visibility. Now, they have performed the same procedure without a single external incision in what surgeons report may be the first surgery of its kind in the United States.

Time: 6:30 PM. Place: 1300 York Avenue at 69th Street, Uris Auditorium. Free and open to the public.

Dr. Herbert Pardes, president and CEO of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, was honored by the New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS) for his leadership in making New York City a center of scientific excellence.

Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital of NewYork-Presbyterian is one of only a few hospitals in the country to offer spinal stapling, a new treatment alternative for young people with scoliosis, an abnormal curvature of the spine that is painful and can restrict breathing. The Center for Early Onset Scoliosis, led by Dr Michael Vitale, sees about 400 patients per year under the age of 5 with the condition. Spinal stapling is one of a number of new techniques that promise improved outcomes.

Minimally invasive techniques have become standard for many procedures, from the removal of the gallbladder to angioplasty, but the approach is now only beginning to be available to patients with spinal conditions. The surgical team at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center's Spine Center aims to bring the benefits of minimally invasive surgery for patients with intractable back pain, stenosis, spinal deformity, even spinal cancer.

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, the nation's largest, not-for-profit, non-sectarian hospital, has teamed with ConEdison Solutions, a leading energy services company, and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) to implement a wide-ranging energy conservation strategy that will deliver more than $745,000 in annual energy savings at the ten-million-square-foot institution.

For the third consecutive year, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has recognized NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital with its ENERGY STAR Award for leadership in efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through energy efficiency. The Hospital is one of only two organizations in New York state and 26 nationally to receive a 2007 award for "Sustained Excellence" -- the highest ENERGY STAR honor. The award was bestowed at a March 21 ceremony in Washington, D.C.