Dignity Health California, a member of CommonSpirit Health, has earned significant recognition in the 2026-2027 U.S. News & World Report Best Hospitals rankings, with high-performing distinctions across more than a dozen medical specialties and procedures. This achievement validates the system’s clinical excellence in areas including cancer, stroke, heart failure, vascular care, and rehabilitation across its 28 hospitals.
Dignity Health’s clinical excellence is defined by its consistency across a vast geographic footprint. By leveraging our scale, we apply rigorous safety standards and the latest medical evidence uniformly across our healthcare system. This network-wide approach has resulted in 94 'High Performing' ratings, with the Central Coast Market leading the way by securing 36 of these distinctions. This ensures that award-winning care is not an exception found in a single city, but a reliable standard accessible to patients all across the state.
While our 94 ‘High Performing’ ratings signify excellence in specific procedures—such as heart bypass surgery or hip replacement—the ‘Best Regional Hospital’ designation represents a broader, more comprehensive achievement. To earn a 'Best Regional Hospital' distinction, a facility must demonstrate sustained, high-quality care across a wide array of specialties and procedures, rather than excelling in just one. It is this standard of cumulative excellence that four of our facilities—Dominican Hospital (Santa Cruz), Mercy General Hospital (Sacramento), Sequoia Hospital (Redwood City), and St. John’s Regional Medical Center (Oxnard)—have been recognized as ‘Best Regional Hospitals.’
The U.S. News rankings evaluate hospitals against rigorous standards, including patient outcomes, patient experience, and the complexity of care provided. It is a benchmark that Julie Sprengel, California President, says aligns perfectly with the system’s mission.
“These recognitions reaffirm our commitment to healthcare excellence and serve as a testament to the culture our teams have built,' Sprengel shares. 'Clinical excellence, to us, means integrating advanced safety protocols and medical evidence with the compassionate, human-centered care our patients deserve. By achieving these ratings across our 28-hospital network, we are proving that patients can expect the same high level of expert care right in their own neighborhoods.”
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About Dignity Health California
Dignity Health California is a nonprofit network of over 9,000 physicians, more than 35,000 employees, 28 acute care hospitals, and 200-plus care centers, including community hospitals, urgent care, surgery and imaging centers, home health, primary care clinics, and St. Joseph’s Behavioral Health Center in Stockton. Dignity Health California provides award-winning care to communities in five primary markets across the state: North State, Sacramento, Central Valley, Central Coast, and Southern California.
Dignity Health is a member of CommonSpirit Health, one of the nation’s largest nonprofit Catholic healthcare organizations, dedicated to providing compassionate, high-quality, and affordable patient-centered care with special attention to the poor and underserved. Learn more at DignityHealth.org and CommonSpirit.org.