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Newsweek has again named University of Virginia Medical Center to its list of America’s Top Maternity Hospitals for its high-quality care of newborns and mothers. 

This is the fourth consecutive year that Newsweek has recognized the hospital as one of the nation’s best places to give birth.

“Providing excellent care for babies and their mothers is a true team effort that encompasses so many people across the medical center, including our UVA Children’s and UVA Women’s Services teams,” said Wendy Horton, PharmD, MBA, the chief executive officer of UVA Medical Center. “I’m so pleased to see their quality care recognized nationally.”

UVA Medical Center was among just 159 hospitals nationally that earned the publication’s highest rating — five ribbons — for maternity care. Newsweek’s ratings are based on three factors:

• a national survey of hospital managers and maternity care specialists that asked them to recommend top maternity hospitals.
• a review of key hospital-performance data related to maternity care, including a hospital’s rate of cesarean births.
• a review of patient-satisfaction data, such as how patients rated hospital staff for communication and responsiveness.

“The best hospitals provide mothers and babies with the highest quality care from pregnancy through birth and even postpartum,” wrote Nancy Cooper, Newsweek’s global editor in chief, in her introduction to the list.

One recent addition to UVA Medical Center care options is a perinatal mood disorders clinic. The clinic serves the mental health needs of our patients during pregnancy and for up to one year after childbirth, as well as providing pre-pregnancy consults for those who want to plan how to manage their psychiatric medications during pregnancy.

“Our OB/Gyns are proud to work alongside our outstanding nurses, certified nurse midwives, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, pediatricians, anesthesiologists and all the team members who continually partner to enhance the care our newborns and mothers receive,” said Paola Gehrig, MD, chair of UVA Health’s Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. “This is a well-deserved honor for our entire team.”

Maternity Care at UVA Health

In addition to women and children’s services at UVA Medical Center in Charlottesville, UVA Health labor and delivery services are offered at UVA Health Culpeper Medical Center and UVA Health Prince William Medical Center in Manassas. Culpeper Medical Center has been named by Money magazine and The Leapfrog Group to their Best Hospitals for Maternity Care list in 2022. Prince William Medical Center, which has a level three neonatal intensive care unit, has been awarded top grades for patient safety and quality from The Leapfrog Group, with an ‘A’ rating for 10 consecutive grading periods.