Healthgrades recently released its 2026 America’s Best Hospitals list, and four AcuityPlus clients ranked among the Top 50 hospitals nationwide while an additional six were named to the Top 250 list. Inclusion on these lists reflects sustained, high-level clinical performance across a broad range of inpatient conditions and procedures.
Healthgrades’ Outcomes-Based Methodology
Each year, Healthgrades analyzes the clinical performance and outcomes of hospitals nationwide. The assessment covers more than 30 common procedures and conditions, and measures risk-adjusted mortality and complication rates. Hospitals’ actual results are compared with statistically predicted outcomes that account for factors such as patient age, diagnosis, and procedure complexity. Based on this evaluation, the top performing hospitals are recognized. The top 5% earn placements on the Top 250 list, the top 2% on the Top 100 list, and the top 1% on the Top 50 list. This outcomes-driven approach highlights hospitals that consistently deliver high-quality care.
Earning a place on the Healthgrades Best Hospitals list requires more than strong performance in a single service area. Hospitals must maintain high-quality outcomes across a broad range of care areas. This demonstrates clinical reliability, effective care coordination, and strong operational execution. These outcomes are closely tied to how care is delivered at the bedside each day.
Nursing and Operational Excellence for Best Hospitals
Nursing plays a central role in achieving these results. Nurses are responsible for continuous patient assessment, early intervention or prevention of complications, and coordination across care teams. Research shows that hospitals with appropriate nurse staffing coverage and optimized nursing resources experience lower mortality, fewer complications, and fewer nurse-sensitive adverse events. Additionally, staffing instability, such as heavy reliance on overtime or temporary staffing, is associated with worse patient safety and outcomes.
Safe, acuity-driven staffing is foundational for operational excellence. When hospitals align nursing resources with actual patient care, they are better equipped to respond to changes in patients’ needs, avoid adverse events, and sustain high-quality care even during periods of increased demand or complexity.
AcuityPlus supports hospitals in this work by providing objective, standardized, and actionable insight into patient acuity and nursing workload. By supporting staffing decisions that reflect real-time patient needs and total nursing workload, AcuityPlus helps nursing teams deliver consistent, safe, and effective care. This disciplined approach to staffing supports the clinical outcomes that distinguish top-performing hospitals.
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