Five South Carolina hospitals earned top ratings for their maternity care in 2024 from a new U.S. News & World Report ranking .
According to the ranking, released on Tuesday, the hospitals earned a “high performing” rating — the highest rating awarded by U.S. News for maternity hospitals. U.S. News began evaluating maternity care hospitals in 2021, rating hospitals that provide labor and delivery services and submit data for analysis.
The high performance rating shows that the hospitals provide high-quality labor and delivery services for uncomplicated pregnancies. A high performing status rates how well a hospital performs in childbirth using criteria such as:
- Cesarean section (C-section) rates.
- Newborn complication rates.
- Breast milk feeding rates.
- Early elective delivery rates.
- Routine vaginal birth after cesarean delivery (VBAC) rates.
- Episiotomy rates.
- If a hospital meets new federal criteria for “birthing-friendly” practices.
- Whether a hospital tracks and reports outcomes for patients of different races and ethnicities.
High performing SC hospitals
Here are the hospitals that received a high performing rating for maternity care. To learn more about how the hospitals earned their ratings, click on their links.
- Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital in Charleston
- MUSC Health-University Medical Center in Charleston
- Lexington Medical Center in West Columbia
- MUSC Health Florence Medical Center in Florence
- Roper St. Francis Berkeley Hospital in Summerville
In a Tuesday press release, MUSC pointed out that it’s two hospitals included in the ranking had both improved from the previous year…