PHOENIX – Banner Health’s kidney transplant center at Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center in Phoenix has been rated the No. 1 kidney transplant center in the U.S., according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health.

All 246 kidney transplant centers in the U.S. were assessed in the study by using publicly reported data from the transplant centers and Medicare. Factors assessed included patient outcomes, experience and wait times.

Phoenix-based Banner Health owns McKee Medical Center in Loveland and has a contract to operate North Colorado Medical Center in Greeley.

Banner Good Samaritan is Arizona’s oldest and most experienced transplant center, performing almost 3,200 kidney transplants since 1969. That first recipient, Violet Lopez, is still alive.

“Our goal is to treat every transplant patient with the best care possible and this award confirms our mission,” said Lauren Rutledge, director of the Good Samaritan Transplant Center.