Morristown Medical Center named top hospital in N.J. for 3rd straight year (UPDATED)

    Morristown Medical Center was selected as the top hospital in New Jersey for the third consecutive year by the prestigious U.S. News & World Report rankings, it was announced Tuesday morning.

    Hackensack University Medical Center was ranked No. 2 in the state, while Saint Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick and Valley Hospital in Ridgewood finished in a tie for No. 3.

    Here are the rest of the hospitals that earned a ranking:

    No. 6: Jersey Shore University in Neptune.

    Tied for No. 7: HMH Ocean Medical Center in Brick Township; and Virtua Voorhees Hospital.

    Tied for No. 9: AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center in Atlantic City; Jefferson Health-Stratford, Cherry Hill and Washington Township in Stratford; and Penn Medicine Princeton Medical Center in Plainsboro.

    Tied for No. 12: HMH Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank; Overlook Medical Center in Summit; and Virtua Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Camden.

    To be clear: While it is more important than ever to recognize the efforts of health care providers everywhere, the information used in these selections by U.S. News came from data retrieved and research conducted before the COVID-19 pandemic struck the country.

    Hackensack University Medical Center was ranked No. 2 in the state.

    Morristown Medical Center President Trish O’Keefe said the hospital was thrilled to again earn the top honor and said it is a recognition that is should be shared by every employee.

    “This outstanding national recognition demonstrates the unwavering commitment to excellence from our medical, clinical and support teams to ensure exceptional care is consistently delivered to bring about the best possible patient outcomes,” she said.

    “This recognition validates our innovative and seamless coordination that results in providing high-quality care for our patients. Our communities know that they can rely on us to deliver the quality programs and resources to keep them healthy. We are thrilled by this prestigious recognition.”

    Morristown was ranked as the No. 8 hospital in the New York Metropolitan region, which is up one spot from the 2019 rankings.

    The hospital was ranked in the Top 50 nationally in three adult specialties: orthopedics (No. 28), gynecology (No. 32) and cardiology and heart surgery (No. 38).

    U.S. News officials said they evaluated more than 4,500 medical centers nationwide in 25 specialties, procedures and conditions. In the 16 specialty areas, 165 hospitals were rated in at least one specialty. In rankings by state and metro area, U.S. News recognized hospitals as high performing across multiple areas of care.

    Atlantic Health System CEO Brian Gragnolati said the honor shows what he knows: The staff at Morristown delivers extraordinary care, he said.

    “These honors are a testament to the passion and clinical excellence of our health care heroes,” he said. “My gratitude and congratulations go out to every member of our amazing team. It’s their dedication, talent and innovation that delivers extraordinary care to our communities and makes us a truly great place to work.”

    U.S. News officials say the annual Best Hospitals ranking and ratings, now in their 31st year, are designed to assist patients and their doctors in making informed decisions about where to receive care for challenging health conditions or for common elective procedures.

    The U.S. News Best Hospitals methodologies in most areas of care are based largely on objective measures such as risk-adjusted survival and discharge-to-home rates, volume and quality of nursing, among other care-related indicators.

    For the complete rankings, click here.