Consistency that counts: VCU Medical Center named ‘Best Hospital’ in Richmond metro area for 15 consecutive years
U.S. News & World Report also ranked VCU Medical Center among the nation’s top 50 hospitals for orthopaedics.
July 29, 2025
(Aleixka Block Macfie, Enterprise Marketing and Communications)
By Sara McCloskey-Nieves
Fifteen years of being recognized as the best hospital in the metro area doesn’t happen by accident. At VCU Medical Center, we continue to earn the trust of Richmond and the surrounding communities year after year through our tireless, unrelenting dedication to caring for our patients.
U.S. News & World Report ranked VCU Medical Center, a university-based hospital affiliated with Virginia Commonwealth University, as the No. 1 hospital in the Richmond metro area for the fifteenth year in a row. The medical center was also named the No. 2 hospital in Virginia.
The leading publication ranked orthopaedics (No. 41) at VCU Medical Center among the nation’s Top 50 for the 2025-26 Best Hospital rankings. Sheltering Arms Institute, a joint venture between VCU Health and Sheltering Arms, was also ranked No. 27 for rehabilitation.
“To be recognized time and time again by U.S. News is a great honor and truly a testament to our team members’ undeniable commitment to this community,” said Jim Willis, interim president of VCU Medical Center. “From implementing the latest innovations in robotic surgery to improving access to life-saving care, we are dedicated to making sure each person who walks through our halls receives high-quality care.”
U.S. News evaluated more than 4,400 hospitals across 15 specialties and 22 procedures and conditions, with only 13% of them earning a “Best Hospitals” ranking. Hospitals awarded a “Best” designation excelled at factors such as clinical outcomes, level of nursing care and patient experience.
VCU Medical Center is top-rated in cancer care, heart surgery and more
U.S. News also recognized VCU Medical Center as “High Performing” in four adult specialties: cancer; cardiology, heart and vascular surgery; gastroenterology and GI surgery; as well as pulmonology and lung surgery.
To be designated “High Performing” for an adult specialty, the hospital’s care must be significantly better than the national average in several different areas, such as patient outcomes.
VCU Medical Center also received the highest possible ranking for 15 common adult procedures and conditions, including:
- Abdominal aortic aneurysm repair
- Back surgery (spinal fusion)
- Colon cancer surgery
- Diabetes
- Gynecological cancer surgery
- Heart arrhythmia
- Heart attack
- Heart bypass surgery
- Heart failure
- Hip fracture
- Leukemia, lymphoma & myeloma
- Lung cancer surgery
- Pacemaker implantation
- Prostate cancer surgery
- Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR)
Read more about U.S. News & World Report’s “2025-2026 Best Hospitals”
