U.S. News names Mercy and Sisters best hospitals for maternity care

U.S. News & World Report, a leading national authority on hospital rankings and consumer advice, named Mercy Hospital of Buffalo and Sisters of Charity of Hospital Best Hospitals for Maternity Care for 2022-2023. Of the 300 hospitals that received the high performing designation, only nine are from New York state, with both Mercy and Sisters being the only two hospitals in Western New York to receive this distinction, which is the highest award a hospital can earn in maternity care.

“When expectant parents are deciding where to deliver their baby, the Best Hospitals for Maternity Care listing can help them make more informed decisions about were to receive their maternity care,” said Dr. Anthony Pivarunas, chief of Women’s Services for Catholic Health. “We’re extremely proud of the Mother-Baby teams at Mercy and Sisters hospitals for achieving this important designation and providing the highest quality care to families throughout our community.”

U.S. News evaluated nearly 650 hospitals that provide labor and delivery services and submitted detailed data to the publication for analysis. The Best Hospitals for Maternity Care methodology is based entirely on objective measures of quality, such as C-section rates in lower-risk pregnancies, newborn complication rates, exclusive breastfeeding rates and early elective delivery rates, among others. Also new this year, the U.S. News methodology rewards hospitals that tracked and reported their outcomes for patients of different races and ethnicities.

“Identifying racial disparities in maternity care is a vital step toward achieving health equity,” said Min Hee Seo, senior health data scientist at U.S. News. “The new measures provide expectant parents with many important data points, such as whether hospitals implemented patient safety practices, to assist them in making a decision about where to receive maternity care.”

Mercy and Sisters hospitals deliver 4,000 babies annually. Should a mother or baby need a higher level of care, both hospitals have adult and neonatal intensive care units, with Sisters Hospital offering Level III NICU care for babies as young as 23 weeks and Mercy Hospital offering a Level II NICU for sick and premature infants. You can find out more by visiting https://healthymomhealthybaby.org/.