HCA Healthcare Earns National Recognition for Specialty Care Excellence at 102 Hospitals
HCA Healthcare, Inc., one of the leading healthcare providers in the United States, has announced that 102 of its hospitals have received recognition from Healthgrades for excellence in specialty care, marking the highest number of recognized hospitals among health systems nationwide. The 2027 recognitions highlight clinical performance across several important areas of healthcare, including surgical care, emergency medicine and orthopedic surgery, underscoring the organization’s continued focus on delivering safe, effective and high-quality patient care.
The awards recognize hospitals that have demonstrated strong clinical outcomes in specific specialties and procedures. Healthgrades evaluates hospital performance using objective clinical measures, including risk-adjusted mortality and complication rates. These measures account for differences in patients’ health conditions and the complexity of their treatment, helping provide a more meaningful assessment of hospital outcomes.
For patients and families deciding where to receive medical treatment, such recognitions can offer useful information about hospital performance in particular specialties. The awards are intended to help people understand how hospitals perform in selected areas of care and identify facilities that demonstrate strong clinical results.
HCA Healthcare’s latest achievements include 56 hospitals receiving the Surgical Care Excellence Award and 45 hospitals earning the Emergency Medicine Excellence Award. In addition, 52 HCA Healthcare hospitals were named among America’s 100 Best Hospitals for Orthopedic Surgery. The organization also received 280 America’s Best Specialty distinctions and 617 Specialty Excellence Awards across its recognized hospitals, representing the highest totals among health systems nationwide in both categories.
These results reflect the performance of individual hospitals within HCA Healthcare’s broader network and highlight the importance of clinical expertise, coordinated care and ongoing quality improvement across the healthcare system.
HCA Healthcare Records the Highest Number of Recognized Hospitals
The recognition of 102 hospitals represents a significant achievement for HCA Healthcare as it continues to evaluate and strengthen clinical performance throughout its network. According to the organization, more of its hospitals received Healthgrades specialty care recognition than those of any other health system in the country.
The 2027 awards cover several specialties that play an essential role in patient care. Surgical services, emergency medicine and orthopedic surgery require clinical teams to make timely decisions, follow evidence-based practices and coordinate treatment across different healthcare professionals.
Performance in these areas can influence patient safety, recovery and the likelihood of complications. By recognizing hospitals that demonstrate strong clinical outcomes, Healthgrades provides an additional source of information for patients evaluating healthcare providers.
HCA Healthcare’s achievements span multiple award categories, rather than being limited to a single specialty. This broad distribution demonstrates the range of clinical services represented among the recognized hospitals.
The organization’s results include the following distinctions:
- 102 hospitals recognized for specialty care: HCA Healthcare recorded the highest number of recognized hospitals among health systems nationwide.
- 56 hospitals receiving the Surgical Care Excellence Award: The organization had more recipients of this award than any other health system in the country.
- 45 hospitals earning the Emergency Medicine Excellence Award: This new award recognizes hospitals for clinical outcomes involving serious conditions frequently associated with emergency admissions.
- 52 hospitals named among America’s 100 Best Hospitals for Orthopedic Surgery: HCA Healthcare accounted for more than half of the hospitals receiving this national distinction.
- 280 America’s Best Specialty distinctions: The organization recorded the highest total among health systems nationwide.
- 617 Specialty Excellence Awards: HCA Healthcare also led all health systems in the total number of awards in this category.
Together, these recognitions highlight the performance of HCA Healthcare hospitals across different specialties and clinical settings. They also provide an opportunity for the organization to continue examining its results and identifying practices that may support improvements throughout its network.
Surgical Care Excellence Recognized Across 56 Hospitals
Surgical care is a critical component of hospital services, requiring close coordination among surgeons, nurses, anesthesiology professionals and other members of the clinical team. Effective surgical care involves more than the procedure itself. It also includes patient assessment, preparation, monitoring, complication prevention and postoperative management.
Healthgrades recognized 56 HCA Healthcare hospitals with its 2027 Surgical Care Excellence Award, giving the organization the highest number of recipients among health systems nationwide.
The award reflects clinical outcomes associated with surgical treatment. Measures such as risk-adjusted mortality and complication rates can help assess how hospitals perform when caring for patients undergoing procedures.
Risk adjustment is important because surgical patients may differ considerably in their medical histories, underlying conditions and levels of clinical complexity. Evaluating outcomes while accounting for these differences can provide a more informative comparison than looking at raw numbers alone.
For hospitals, performance assessment can also help identify areas where clinical practices may need to be strengthened. Reviewing outcomes and examining variations in care can support efforts to improve patient safety and reduce avoidable complications.
HCA Healthcare’s recognition across 56 hospitals highlights the surgical performance of facilities throughout its network. The organization says it remains committed to evaluating clinical results and supporting its caregivers as they work to deliver safe and effective treatment.
Emergency Medicine Excellence Award Highlights Critical Care Outcomes
Emergency departments serve patients experiencing a wide range of medical conditions, from injuries and acute illnesses to potentially life-threatening emergencies. Clinical teams must assess patients quickly, identify serious conditions and determine the appropriate course of treatment.
HCA Healthcare reported that 45 of its hospitals received the new 2027 Emergency Medicine Excellence Award from Healthgrades, more than any other health system nationwide.
The award recognizes hospital clinical outcomes involving serious conditions commonly associated with emergency admissions, including heart attacks, strokes and sepsis.
These conditions can require rapid evaluation, timely treatment and effective coordination among emergency physicians, nurses, specialists and other healthcare professionals. Delays in recognizing or managing a serious condition can have significant consequences, making emergency department performance an important part of overall hospital quality.
Healthgrades’ assessment of emergency medicine outcomes provides a way to evaluate hospitals using clinical measures rather than relying solely on the range of services they offer or the volume of patients they treat.
For HCA Healthcare, the recognition comes alongside its broader efforts to support emergency department teams through shared expertise, clinical data and standardized technology.
The organization handles approximately 10 million emergency room visits annually across its network. According to HCA Healthcare, experience gained from this system-wide volume helps the organization work with clinical teams to identify opportunities for improvement and share practices that may benefit other hospitals.
The company’s approach emphasizes the role of learning across facilities. By examining clinical performance and drawing on experience from different hospitals, the organization seeks to identify opportunities to improve patient assessment, treatment coordination and care delivery.
Technology and Clinical Collaboration Support Emergency Care
HCA Healthcare continues to invest in systems intended to help caregivers access information and make informed clinical decisions.
In 2025, the organization standardized technology across its emergency departments to give care teams a more complete view of patient information. The initiative was designed to support timely decision-making and more coordinated care.
Emergency departments frequently manage patients with complex medical histories, multiple health conditions or symptoms that require immediate investigation. Access to relevant patient information can help clinicians assess individual needs and determine appropriate next steps.
Standardizing technology across facilities can also support greater consistency in how clinical information is presented and used. When caregivers have access to a more complete picture of a patient’s condition, they may be better positioned to coordinate evaluations and treatment with other members of the care team.
HCA Healthcare’s broader network provides an opportunity to examine how clinical workflows and technology can support emergency services across multiple hospitals.
The company also draws on its extensive emergency care experience to identify areas where processes may be improved. By sharing lessons and practices across its network, HCA Healthcare aims to help clinical teams learn from collective experience rather than addressing every challenge independently at the individual hospital level.
These initiatives complement the organization’s emphasis on clinical performance measurement. Together, technology, data analysis and collaboration can help hospitals assess their results and identify opportunities to strengthen patient care.
Although awards offer recognition of performance in specific areas, maintaining and improving emergency care requires continued attention to clinical processes, caregiver support and the changing needs of patients.
Orthopedic Surgery Recognition at 52 Hospitals
Orthopedic surgery addresses conditions affecting the musculoskeletal system, including bones, joints, ligaments and other structures that support movement. Treatment may involve surgical procedures intended to relieve pain, repair injuries, restore function or improve mobility.
Healthgrades named 52 HCA Healthcare hospitals among America’s 100 Best Hospitals for Orthopedic Surgery in its 2027 recognitions. According to HCA Healthcare, this represented more than half of all hospitals receiving the national distinction.
The recognition highlights the performance of HCA Healthcare facilities in a specialty that can have a substantial effect on patients’ everyday lives. Successful orthopedic treatment may help patients regain mobility, return to routine activities and improve their ability to live independently, although outcomes vary depending on individual conditions and treatment circumstances.
Orthopedic care often involves multiple stages, including diagnosis, treatment planning, surgical intervention when appropriate and recovery support. Coordination among surgeons, nursing professionals, rehabilitation specialists and other healthcare providers can contribute to the overall treatment experience.
Clinical outcomes are therefore an important consideration when evaluating orthopedic services. Measures related to mortality and complications can help assess hospital performance in procedures and conditions covered by the Healthgrades analysis.
The recognition of 52 hospitals gives HCA Healthcare a substantial presence among the facilities honored for orthopedic surgery. It also reinforces the organization’s broader representation across specialty care categories.
For patients considering orthopedic treatment, hospital awards can serve as one source of information. Patients should also consider their specific medical needs, physician recommendations, available services, insurance coverage and discussions with their healthcare professionals when choosing where to receive care.
Leadership Emphasizes Trust, Teamwork and Patient Safety
Michael Schlosser, M.D., MBA, executive vice president and chief clinical officer of HCA Healthcare, said the awards reflect the responsibility hospitals have when caring for people during difficult moments in their lives.
“Patients place an extraordinary amount of trust in the people caring for them, often during some of the most difficult moments in their lives,” Schlosser said.
He noted that the recognitions reflect the expertise, dedication and teamwork of physicians, nurses and other colleagues who care for patients every day.
Schlosser also emphasized that the awards reinforce HCA Healthcare’s responsibility to continue learning, measuring clinical performance and identifying ways to make care safer and better for every patient it serves.
The statement highlights the organization’s focus on clinical outcomes as an ongoing process rather than a goal achieved through individual awards. Hospitals must continue assessing their performance, supporting clinical teams and adapting practices as medical knowledge and patient needs evolve.
Physicians, nurses and other healthcare professionals play a central role in this process. Their work involves applying clinical knowledge, communicating with patients and families, coordinating treatment and responding to changing medical circumstances.
At the system level, HCA Healthcare seeks to support these responsibilities through its connected network, which enables hospitals to share expertise and learn from clinical data.
The organization’s approach combines recognition of strong performance with an emphasis on continuous improvement. By reviewing results and identifying opportunities for better care, HCA Healthcare aims to support clinical teams in delivering safe, effective and compassionate treatment.
Healthgrades Uses Clinical Outcomes to Evaluate Hospitals
Healthgrades evaluates hospitals using objective clinical measures to assess performance in selected specialties, conditions and procedures. Its specialty care recognitions are based on an analysis of clinical outcomes for common conditions and treatments.
Risk-adjusted mortality and complication rates are among the measures used in hospital evaluations. These measures account for differences in patients’ health status and the complexity of their care, helping provide context when assessing outcomes.
The methodology focuses on clinical performance in specific areas rather than treating every hospital service as equivalent. As a result, recognition in a particular specialty does not necessarily mean a hospital performs equally well across every department or type of treatment.
Similarly, a hospital’s recognition should be considered alongside other factors when patients evaluate their options. Individual medical needs, physician expertise, the availability of specialized services and insurance arrangements can all influence where treatment is most appropriate.
For healthcare organizations, third-party assessments can provide an additional way to understand clinical performance and identify areas for continued evaluation. The results can also help patients and families access information about hospitals that have demonstrated strong outcomes in the specialties examined.
HCA Healthcare’s 2027 results reflect its performance across a wide range of specialty care distinctions, with 102 hospitals recognized and hundreds of additional awards and distinctions recorded across its network.
Continued Commitment to Clinical Quality and Improvement
HCA Healthcare said it remains focused on improving clinical outcomes and the patient care experience across its hospital network. While the latest Healthgrades recognitions highlight performance at individual facilities, the organization continues to evaluate its results and identify opportunities for improvement.
Its approach includes supporting caregivers, examining clinical data, sharing knowledge across hospitals and using technology to help teams coordinate patient care. These activities are intended to strengthen clinical practices and promote consistent attention to patient safety.
The recognition of 56 hospitals for surgical care excellence, 45 for emergency medicine excellence and 52 for orthopedic surgery performance illustrates the breadth of HCA Healthcare’s achievements in the 2027 awards.
The organization also received 280 America’s Best Specialty distinctions and 617 Specialty Excellence Awards, the highest totals among health systems nationwide in both categories, according to the announcement.
These achievements provide an important measure of performance in the specialties evaluated by Healthgrades. However, HCA Healthcare’s stated objective extends beyond receiving recognition. The company intends to continue measuring its performance, learning from clinical experience and helping its caregivers deliver effective and compassionate treatment.
As healthcare providers face ongoing demands to improve safety, outcomes and care coordination, the ability to evaluate clinical results and share effective practices remains an important part of hospital quality improvement.
With 102 hospitals recognized by Healthgrades for specialty care excellence, HCA Healthcare is highlighting the work of its clinical teams while reaffirming its commitment to ongoing improvement throughout its network.
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