Northwestern Memorial Hospital and Rush University Medical Center are among the top 20 hospitals in the nation and have again tied for best hospital in Illinois, according to U.S. News & World Report rankings.
Northwestern and Rush were the only Illinois hospitals to be named among the top 20 in the country. U.S. News ranked University of Chicago Medical Center as the third best hospital in the state and Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn as the fourth best.
Rush and Northwestern tied for best hospital in the state last year as well, after more than a decade of Northwestern holding the top spot alone.
“We’re really proud and honored,” said Dr. Paul Casey, senior vice president and chief medical officer for Rush University System for Health. “Being nominated I think is really a testament to the relentless dedication and skill of the Rush team and the work they do to help patients every day.”
U.S. News releases its list of top hospitals in Illinois and across the country each year. Chicago-area hospitals, which compete with one another for patients, often pay close attention to the rankings and use the results in their advertisements.
In recent years, however, U.S. News has faced criticism over its ranking systems, including those for hospitals, law schools and medical schools. Last year, two Pennsylvania-based health systems said they no longer wished to participate in the rankings because they didn’t think they painted an accurate picture of hospitals’ quality.
But other hospital leaders still see value in the ratings.
“My perspective is by participating we’re able to ensure we’re moving our organization in the areas where we need to move and need to improve,” said Dr. Tom Spiegel, vice president and chief quality officer for University of Chicago Medicine, noting that U.S. News bases most of its ratings on publicly available data. “We don’t just blindly follow U.S. News & World Report, but we do use it as an external assessment for opportunities where we can improve.”
U.S. News ranks hospitals based on federal data, including death rates, preventable complications and levels of nursing care. U.S. News has adjusted its methodology recently, such as by putting less emphasis on expert opinions and including more outpatient data (data about patients who do not stay overnight). This year’s ratings also include data from Medicare Advantage patients, not just patients in traditional Medicare.
In addition to producing a list of the top hospitals in the country, U.S. News also rates hospitals across a number of specialties, procedures and conditions. Northwestern Memorial ranked among the top 10 hospitals in the country this year for four specialties: cardiology, heart and vascular surgery (7th); diabetes and endocrinology (8th); gastroenterology and GI surgery (10th) and obstetrics and gynecology (9th). Rush ranked among the top 10 hospitals in the country in neurology and neurosurgery (7th), orthopedics (10th) and geriatrics (10th).
University of Chicago Medical Center’s highest specialty ratings were 11th in the country for ear, nose and throat and 12th in the nation for cancer.
U.S. News ranked the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab in Chicago as the best hospital for rehabilitation in the country for the 34th consecutive year.
Other hospitals that ranked in U.S. News’ top 10 in Illinois this year (with some tying) include: Endeavor Health (with Highland Park, Skokie, Evanston and Glenbrook hospitals ranked together), Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge, Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital in Winfield, Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital in Barrington, Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood and Northwestern Medicine Lake Forest Hospital.
U.S. News is one of a number of organizations that rank hospitals each year, often with differing results. For example, the nonprofit Leapfrog Group awarded grades of A to Rush University Medical Center and University of Chicago Medical Center, but gave Northwestern Memorial a B. Medicare has its own ratings system, in which it awarded five out of five stars for overall quality to Northwestern Memorial and Rush University Medical Center, while giving University of Chicago Medical Center four stars.
Ratings organizations encourage patients to use their grades and rankings as just one factor when choosing where to receive care. Patients should also consider their health insurance coverage, specific medical needs and where their physicians practice when selecting hospitals, said Ben Harder, U.S. News managing editor and chief of health analysis, in a video provided to media.
He called the U.S. News rankings a “starting point” for patients.
“There is no single hospital that’s best for all patients or even best for all patients in one particular area of the country,” Harder said. “The highest ranked hospital may not be the right hospital for you as a patient.”
