Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital receives high-performance ranking in maternity care

U.S. News & World Report has named Providence Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital a “2024 High Performing Hospital for Maternity Care (Uncomplicated Pregnancy),” the hospital announced in a Dec. 5 news release.

“We are honored to be recognized among the best in the nation for our exceptional maternity care,” Providence Northern California Chief Executive Garry Olney said in the hospital’s news release. “As a nurse and a father of twin boys who required neonatal ICU care, I feel a strong connection to the work we do bringing new life into the world.”

Other North Bay hospitals receiving the high performance for maternity care designation from U.S. News & World Report are NorthBay Medical Center in Fairfield, Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital, and Sutter Lakeside Hospital in Lakeport, Lake County.

The U.S. News Best Hospitals for Maternity Care uses methodology based on how well hospitals perform in childbirth measures, such as C-section rates, breast milk feeding rates and early elective delivery rates, according to U.S. News & World Report.

“These hospitals have C-section rates that are 26% lower, and newborn complication rates that are 37% lower than unrecognized hospitals,” Jennifer Winston, health data scientist at U.S. News, said in a press release. “Parents-to-be can research their local hospitals’ performance metrics for free at health.usnews.com to help them choose where to have their baby.”

U.S. News & World Report also ranks hospitals based on federal criteria for "birthing-friendly" practices, and whether a hospital tracked and reported its outcomes for patients of different races and ethnicities, according to the report.