RUSH is ranked highest amongst all Illinois hospitals in the 2022 Lown Institute Hospitals Index.
- RUSH University Medical Center was ranked the most socially responsible hospital in Illinois, and among the top 4% of 3,606 hospitals nationally.
- The index also ranked the Medical Center highest for social responsibility among the 20 hospitals on U.S. News & World Report’s Best Hospitals Honor Roll.
- Both the Medical Center and RUSH Oak Park Hospital received ‘A’ grades, the highest possible, for social responsibility.
Founded by the late Dr. Bernard Lown, a pioneering cardiologist and humanitarian who was a co-recipient of the 1985 Nobel Peace Prize, the Lown Institute is a nonpartisan think tank focused on improving health care in the United States. The institute bases its list of America’s Most Socially Responsible Hospitals on three primary metrics — outcomes, value of care and equity.
While most rankings measure just patient outcomes, the Lown Index takes into account what hospitals do as care providers, employers and community partners to identify which of those hospitals provide exceptional, high-value patient care. The rankings use publicly available hospital data, such as Medicare claims, to determine the rankings of socially responsible hospitals.
The equity grade combines assessments of community benefit spending, pay equity, and inclusivity to evaluate hospitals’ commitment to community health and civic leadership. The value of care category reflects hospitals' avoidance of unnecessary care and ability to achieve good outcomes without overspending. The patient outcomes category is calculated based on clinical outcomes, patient safety and patient satisfaction.
“At RUSH, we’re strongly committed to our communities and providing excellent care for all patients,” said Dr. Omar Lateef, president and CEO of RUSH and RUSH University Medical Center. “That commitment is realized every day through our leadership in health equity and our dedication to environmental sustainability. We are honored by the Lown Institute’s recognition. Their rankings will inspire us to further strengthen our commitment to excellence and our communities.”
RUSH has a long-standing tradition of excellence in health equity. That commitment to excellence has been recognized by various national organizations with the following honors:
- The American Hospital Association chose RUSH as an honoree for its annual award for equity of care four times from 2015 to 2019. The award recognizes outstanding efforts among hospitals and health care systems to advance equity of care to all patients.
- In addition to its place on the U.S. News Honor Roll, the Medical Center ranked third among 107 participating academic medical centers for quality of inpatient care, and also third among 55 participating ambulatory (i.e., outpatient clinic) care practices, in the most recent annual survey by the health care services organization Vizient.
- The Medical Center, along with the other RUSH hospitals, repeatedly has received the highest possible grade for patient safety from the Leapfrog Group, a safety watchdog organization, in Leapfrog’s twice-yearly Hospital Safety Grades.
- RUSH University System for Health has been named an LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality Leader in the 2022 Healthcare Equality Index.
In addition, RUSH’s health equity work includes the following achievements:
- With the support of a $10 million donation from BMO Financial Group, the RUSH BMO Institute for Health Equity launched last year to coordinate health equity efforts across RUSH.
- The Medical Center’s Anchor Mission Strategy channels its economic power to improve the economic vitality of its nearby West Side Chicago neighborhoods and help residents achieve better health.
- The Medical Center has taken multiple outreach initiatives to provide vaccines for COVID-19 to underserved communities, hosting hundreds of clinics and providing thousands of vaccine doses.
- Affirm: The RUSH Center for Gender, Sexuality and Reproductive Health provides high-quality care and affirming care for LGBTQ+ patients, including gender-affirming care and HIV care.
- The Office of Community Health Equity and Engagement (CHEE) maintains numerous programs to improve the health and quality of life of West Side Chicago residents, including school-based health centers; a food pantry and delivery program; academic enrichment, mentoring and internship opportunities for Chicago schoolchildren and a walking program. You can learn more about CHEE’s work in its 2021 Impact Report.
