World’s Best Specialized Hospitals 2024

Information is a powerful tool when you or someone you love is facing an important health care decision, especially one that requires selecting a hospital or care team. That’s why Newsweek has once again partnered with global research firm Statista to rank the world’s best specialized hospitals. This year, we expanded our rankings to cover the best facilities in 12 specialties, with the addition of obstetrics and gynecology.

The ranking of World’s Best Specialized Hospitals 2024 features the top 300 hospitals for cardiology and oncology, the top 250 for pediatrics, the top 150 in each specialty of cardiac surgery, endocrinology, and gastroenterology, the top 125 in each for neurology, neurosurgery, orthopedics, pulmonology, and urology and the top 100 for obstetrics and gynecology.

We hope that this ranking is helpful for you when seeking information about the right hospital for yourself or a loved one.

You may also want to visit our other ranking featuring the World’s Best Smart Hospitals 2024. Is your hospital not featured in the ranking? Discover the new Global Hospital Rating by Newsweek and Statista.

METHODOLOGY

The World’s Best Specialized Hospitals 2024 ranking awards the leading hospitals worldwide in 12 medical fields: cardiology, cardiac surgery, oncology, endocrinology, neurology, neurosurgery, orthopedics, gastroenterology, pulmonology, pediatrics, urology and (for the first time) obstetrics & gynecology.

The lists are based on a global survey, to which tens of thousands of medical professionals (doctors, health care professionals and hospital managers) were invited.

The ranking features the top 300 hospitals for cardiology and oncology, the top 250 for pediatrics, the top 150 for cardiac surgery, endocrinology, and gastroenterology, the top 125 for neurology, neurosurgery, orthopedics, pulmonology, and urology and the top 100 for obstetrics & gynecology. The list is based on three data sources:

1. Worldwide Online Survey

During the survey period from June to July 2023, tens of thousands of experts were invited to an online survey in cooperation with Newsweek. Participants were asked to recommend hospitals based on their expertise in one primary medical field (e.g., cardiology for cardiologists) and were able to choose an optional secondary area of expertise in which they are also knowledgeable (e.g., due to frequent cooperation with other medical fields).

2. Accreditation Data

Several accreditations/certifications have been added to the scoring model (where available). Accreditations/certifications reflect a range of structural and/or quality requirements which are now relevant for the specialized rankings.

3. PROMs Implementation Survey

Newsweek and Statista conducted a voluntary PROMs Implementation Survey to account for the increasing importance of Patient Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs). Hospitals which participated in the survey received a PROMs implementation score.

Participants had the opportunity to name a standout specialty for the list of Pediatrics. The categories were: Cardiology, Cardiac Surgery, Endocrinology, Gastroenterology, Oncology, Neurology, Neonatology, Oncology, Orthopedics and Urology.

Hospitals that specialize in more than one medical field received specific recommendation scores for each medical field based on the respective recommendations. Therefore, one hospital can be represented in more than one list if it receives enough recommendations in each medical field.

Scoring Model

▸ RECOMMENDATIONS FROM PEERS (primary weighted 70%, secondary weighted 30%. Total weight 92.5%)

▸ ACCREDITATIONS/CERTIFICATIONS (5%)

▸ PROMs IMPLEMENTATION SURVEY (2.5%)

Primary recommendations from experts in each medical field account for 70% of each hospital’s preliminary reputation score. Secondary recommendations from medical professionals with knowledge in more than one medical field received a weight of 30% toward the preliminary reputation score.

Worldwide Online Survey

From June to July 2023 Statista invited tens of thousands of medical professionals (mostly doctors, but also hospital managers and other health care professionals) in over 30 countries to an online survey. The survey was also promoted on newsweek.com. Participants were invited via email.

Participants were asked to recommend hospitals in their own field of expertise and were able to recommend hospitals of a secondary field. Recommendations for their own employer/hospital were not allowed. A score was assigned to each facility based on the number of weighted recommendations. The professional experience of the participants was considered.

Accreditation Data

Accreditations were used as an additional element of the scoring model (where available). The following accreditations/certifications reflect a range of structural and/or quality requirements which are now relevant for the specialized rankings:

CARF International (Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities)

IAC (Intersocietal Accreditation Commission)

JCI (Joint Commission International)

FACT (Foundation for the Accreditation of Cellular Therapy)

In addition to general hospital certifications, any available accreditations/certifications relevant to specific medical fields (e.g., pediatric specialty program for pediatrics, brain injury specialty program for neurology) were used.

PROMs Implementation Survey

Patient Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) are defined as standardized, validated questionnaires completed by patients to measure their perception of their functional well-being and quality of life. In 2023, Newsweek and Statista conducted a voluntary PROMs Implementation Survey to determine the status quo of implementation of generic and condition specific PROMs in hospital settings, audits and reporting of the data, and to determine whether the PROMs data is used to optimize the care process and to support therapeutic decisions in real-time. A PROMs implementation score was included in the scoring model of the project.

In cooperation with a panel of experts, a grading system for the different questions was built to determine a PROMs Score. Only hospitals which achieved a minimum of 50% (of the maximum 100% score) were eligible to be graded on the PROMs score curve.

A global board of renowned experts provided guidance and feedback in the design of the PROMs Implementation survey:

Prof. Dr. David Bates, Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School

Dr. Gary Kaplan, Senior Advisor and Senior Vice President, CommonSpirit Health

Prof. Dr. med. Christoph Meier, Director, Department of Internal medicine, University Hospital Zürich, Switzerland

Prof. Dr. Eyal Zimlichman, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Sheba Medical Center, Israel

Prof. Dr. Gregory Katz, Chair of Innovation Management & Value in Health, University of Paris Medical School, France

Dr. med. Jens Deerberg Wittram, CEO, Romed Kliniken, Germany

Future cycles will be announced on newsweek.com and via e-mail to pre-registered participants. Pre-registration is available here.

Disclaimer

The rankings are composed exclusively of hospitals that are eligible regarding the scope described here. A mention in the ranking is a positive recognition based on peer recommendations and publicly available data sources at the time. The ranking is the result of an elaborate process which, due to the interval of data collection and analysis, is a reflection of the last calendar year. Furthermore, events preceding or following the period August 2, 2022 to August 1, 2023 and/or pertaining to individual persons affiliated/associated with the facilities were not included in the metrics. As such, the results of this ranking should not be used as the sole source of information for future deliberations. The information provided in this ranking should be considered in conjunction with other available information about hospitals or, if possible, accompanied by a visit to a facility. Please note that data are subject to change and may be affected by continuing differences among states in abortion laws. The quality of hospitals that are not included in the rankings is not disputed.

Note: As with all our rankings, World’s Best Specialized Hospitals 2024 is continually updated based on available information. We have removed one hospital from this list.

About Statista R

Statista R is a world leader in the creation of company, brand, and product rankings, based on comprehensive market research and data analysis. With a team of over 100 expert analysts and partnerships with more than 50 media publications across all continents, Statista R creates transparency for consumers and helps companies build trust and recognition across a plethora of industries and product categories.

Please visit r.statista.com for further information about Statista R and our rankings.

Download the full methodology here and the extended version here.