Awards and Recognition

U.S. News & World Report Rankings

UF Health Shands Hospital

As a perennial leader in health care in Florida, University of Florida Health Shands Hospital is once again recognized by the U.S. News & World Report’s Best Hospitals rankings for excellence in adult patient care, with seven medical specialties ranked among the nation’s elite. Combined with the five pediatric specialties ranked in the nation’s top 50 by U.S. News & World Report, UF Health Shands has 12 specialties recognized.

Being among the nation’s top programs in several medical specialties is an honor achieved by few health systems in the United States. The seven specialties include cancer (No. 39); ear, nose and throat (No. 47); geriatrics (No. 43); neurology and neurosurgery (No. 39); obstetrics and gynecology (No. 26); urology (No. 30); and pulmonology and lung surgery (No. 40), its 16th straight year ranked among the nation’s best.

UF Health Shands Hospital also had 19 procedures and conditions ranked as “high performing,” meaning they were in the top 10% of all hospitals nationally scored in that specialty. Those were abdominal aortic aneurysm repair; chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; colon cancer surgery; diabetes; gynecological cancer surgery; heart attack; heart failure; hip fracture; hip replacement; kidney failure; knee replacement; leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma; lung cancer surgery; pneumonia; prostate cancer surgery; stroke; and transcatheter aortic valve replacement.

Other specialties that were rated “high performing” include cardiology and heart and vascular surgery; diabetes and endocrinology; gastroenterology and GI surgery; and orthopaedics.

UF Health Shands Children's Hospital

• UF Health Shands Children’s Hospital is honored to be recognized as one of the nation’s top children’s hospitals according to the 2025-26 U.S. News & World Report Best Children’s Hospital rankings. Our pediatric experts’ commitment to providing superb care and attention is reflected in the national rankings of our outstanding pediatric specialty programs: cardiology and heart surgery (15th), pulmonology and lung surgery (22nd), cancer (36th), neonatology (38th), diabetes and endocrinology (42nd) and pediatric and adolescent behavioral health - top 50 in the nation. Thank you for trusting us to care for your child and your family.
• University of Florida Health Shands Children’s Hospital has been verified by the American College of Surgeons as a Level 1 pediatric trauma center, one of fewer than 20 in the nation to earn the distinction. The verification means that the hospital meets the ACS’s highest standards for staff, resources and equipment to optimally handle a child’s life-threatening injuries.
  

UF Health Jacksonville

• UF Health Jacksonville received high-performing honors in seven patient care procedures/conditions: COPD, diabetes, heart attack, heart failure, kidney failure, PNA and stroke. The organization also had no below-average procedures or conditions, and it met or exceeded all the USNWR clinical outcome metrics used to score and rank the service lines and the procedures and conditions.

ANCC Magnet Designation

UF Health Shands hospitals and programs received a fifth consecutive Magnet designation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center in spring 2023. The Magnet Recognition Program serves as the gold standard for nursing excellence and gives consumers a benchmark for measuring quality care. It’s the highest national honor for any professional nursing practice.

Fewer than 1% of hospitals and health systems nationwide have achieved the designation and only 23 in Florida hold Magnet status. With this designation, UF Health joins only 43 other health care organizations in the nation to receive the Magnet designation five or more consecutive times. UF Health’s first such honor was in 2003. Each designation lasts for four years.

Hospitals that earn Magnet recognition must meet stringent quantitative and qualitative standards that define the quality of nursing and patient care. The application process includes comprehensive written documentation, which is validated by virtual or in-person site visits.

North Central Florida’s only NCI-designated cancer center

The UF Health Cancer Center has received prestigious designation from the National Cancer Institute, or NCI, and joins the ranks of the country’s most distinguished cancer centers, becoming the 72nd in the United States and the only one in North Central Florida. The designation signifies that the UF Health Cancer Center has met rigorous standards in its leading-edge cancer research programs, advanced scientific leadership, distinctive training programs and forward-thinking community outreach.

At a time when Florida has the nation’s second-highest cancer burden, the funding will provide more resources for innovative clinical trials and increase access to cancer care. Being part of the NCI network means patients in North Central Florida and beyond can be assured of access to the most advanced cancer treatments and innovation — backed by research conducted by dedicated scientists.

4-Star Vizient Quality Rating

UF Health Shands received a 4-star rating on Vizient’s Quality and Accountability Scorecard once again in 2024. The rating reflects our quality of care in comparison to 107 comprehensive academic medical centers across the United States.

Maintaining a 4-star rating during the many challenges of a pandemic is a major accomplishment. It reflects the sustained commitment of all the members of our UF Health team to delivering safe, high-quality care. The rating is based on a score that is composed of six categories: mortality, equity, patient-centeredness, effectiveness, efficiency and safety.

AACN Beacon Awards for Excellence

UF Health’s hospital system includes nine units that have an active Beacon Award for Excellence from the American Association of Critical Care Nurses, or AACN:

• UF Health Jacksonville, Medical Intensive Care Unit (gold)
• UF Health Shands Hospital, 5 West Trauma Unit (gold)
• UF Health Shands Hospital, Surgical Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit (gold)
• UF Health Shands Cancer Hospital, Postanesthesia Care Unit (gold)
• UF Health Shands Children’s Hospital, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (gold)
• UF Health Shands Children’s Hospital, Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (gold)
• UF Health Heart & Vascular and Neuromedicine Hospitals, Postanesthesia Care Unit (silver)
• UF Health Shands Hospital, Postanesthesia Care Unit (silver)
• UF Health Shands Hospital, operating rooms (silver)

A Beacon Award — recognized at a gold, silver or bronze level — is a three-year designation that recognizes nursing teams that meet national criteria consistent with Magnet recognition by the American Nurses Credentialing Center, the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and the National Quality Healthcare Award. The award identifies individual nursing units that promote healthy work environments conducive to collaboration, and collect and use evidence-based research to improve patient outcomes, patient and staff satisfaction and credibility with health care consumers. Beacon Award criteria include leadership structures and systems; appropriate staffing and staff engagement; effective communication, knowledge management, learning and development; and evidence-based practices and processes.

Other Hospital Honors & Awards

• Maternity Care
  UF Health has once again been recognized as one of the Best Hospitals for Maternity Care, receiving a High Performing rating from U.S. News & World Report. This rating, which is the highest possible, focuses on identifying hospitals providing the highest-quality maternal care for uncomplicated pregnancies.
• Baby-Friendly
  Since March 2015, UF Health Shands Hospital has maintained the Baby-Friendly designation awarded by Baby-Friendly USA, a global initiative of the World Health Organization and UNICEF that recognizes birthing facilities that implement specific breastfeeding procedures.
• Health care sustainability
  In recognition of its achievement and innovation in health care sustainability, UF Health Shands Hospital received a 2025 Greenhealth Emerald Award from Practice Greenhealth, the nation's leading organization dedicated to environmental sustainability in health care.

World-Class Care

Transplant services

UF Health consistently earns some of the highest marks in the entire U.S. for its exceptional transplant services.

SRTR annually evaluates transplant programs around the country on metrics that are of greatest concern to transplant candidates: one-year post-transplant survival rates, how quickly candidates can receive a transplant and survival rates on the waitlist.

View UF Health's performance based on SRTR data.

The Nation's Top Liver Transplant Program

The liver transplant program at UF Health Shands Hospital is recognized by the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients, or SRTR, as the country's best liver transplant program with a one-year survival rate of 99.6% — the highest of all hospitals in the U.S. — the result of our commitment to personalized care and our comprehensive team approach.

Our liver program is one of just two out of more than 150 in the nation to score a top rating in all 15 SRTR assessment categories. Additionally, UF Health’s patients have an 82% lower risk of graft failure compared to the national average.

Best Lung Transplant Program in the Southeast

For the past three consecutive reporting cycles, the UF Health Shands Hospital Lung Transplant Program has been recognized by the SRTR as the highest-performing program for patient outcomes in the southeastern U.S. and as one of the top 5 lung transplant programs in the nation.

The program boasts the highest waitlist survival rate in the U.S. along with the lowest wait times in the country. Meanwhile, it ranks among the top seven in one-year survival rates. UF Health is also the only high-volume performing (more than 70 transplants a year) lung transplant program in the U.S. with the highest possible marks for delivering exceptional outcomes both before and after surgery. These benchmarks are especially notable considering UF Health’s emphasis on managing the most complex cases in Florida.

Cancer Center of Excellence

The UF Health Cancer Center is recognized as a state-designated Cancer Center of Excellence by the Florida governor’s office and the Florida Department of Health. The designation by the Florida Legislature recognizes hospitals and treatment centers that demonstrate excellence in patient-centered coordinated care for people undergoing cancer treatment and chemotherapy.

The UF Health Cancer Center has received this designation three consecutive times, with each one lasting three years.

Comprehensive Stroke Center

• The UF Health Shands Comprehensive Stroke Center is certified by The Joint Commission and the American Stroke Association/American Heart Association. The comprehensive stroke center certification recognizes hospitals that have leading-edge infrastructure, experienced staff and extensive training to receive and treat people with simple and complex strokes. The UF Health Shands Comprehensive Stroke Center’s certification by The Joint Commission is a testament to meeting comprehensive stroke center standards and requirements, including advanced imaging capabilities, 24/7 availability of specialized treatments, and staff with unique education and competency standards. The UF Health Shands Comprehensive Stroke Center is part of an elite group of hospitals focused on quality and effective stroke care proven to improve patients’ outcomes. Redesignation validates that UF Health has the highest level of stroke care available anywhere in the world, including the cases with the most complex strokes. Their highly specialized team is uniquely trained and has the competencies to care for stroke patients. The stroke center is also a recipient of the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold Plus Performance Achievement Award.
  
• UF Health Jacksonville is designated as a Comprehensive Stroke Center by the Agency for Health Care Administration and is certified as a Comprehensive Stroke Center with the Gold Seal of Approval™ by The Joint Commission. The hospital is also a recipient of the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold (UF Health Jacksonville Gold Plus) Performance Achievement Award.
• UF Health Leesburg Hospital and UF Health Spanish Plaines Hospital are certified as Primary Stroke Centers by The Joint Commission. Our hospitals in Central Florida are committed to ensuring that stroke patients receive the best treatment possible.

UF Health pediatric and adult ECMO program recognized for international excellence

UF Health Shands Hospital is recognized as a Center of Excellence Gold Level program by the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization for its exceptional care in using extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, or ECMO, in both the pediatric and adult programs.

Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation Care Center Network

UF Health is designated as a member of the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation’s Care Center Network, placing it among only 80 medical centers nationwide with the highest level of expertise and resources for the treatment of interstitial lung disease. The UF Health interstitial lung disease program serves a large geographic area in central and northern Florida, southern Georgia and southern Alabama.

America's Best Physical Rehab Centers

Newsweek has recognized UF Health Rehab Hospital on its list of "America's Best Physical Rehab Centers" for 2022. The hospital came in at No. 8 for the state of Florida.

Community Support

• Over 700 employees donated to the UF Health Shands United Way of North Central Florida campaign to raise more than $203,000 for area residents in need. To date, more than $8 million has been raised to support United Way of North Central Florida.
• UF Health had more than 600 registered walkers who raised over $30,000 for the American Heart Association’s Alachua County Heart Walk.
• Sixteen teams made up of 154 UF Health employees participated in the American Cancer Society Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk and raised more than $18,000 for the event.