VCU named top hospital in Richmond by U.S. News

VCU Medical Center is the second-best hospital in Virginia and the best in Richmond, according to U.S. News & World Report's annual analysis published Tuesday.

Why it matters: That's good news for locals who need medical care.

State of play: U.S. News' ranking compared more than 4,500 hospitals by patient outcomes across 20 benchmark procedures like knee replacement and heart bypass surgery, and other data sources like Medicare, patient surveys and expert opinions.

• Not only did VCU earn top marks in the state and region, it was one of just two hospitals in Virginia that ranked in the top 50 nationally for a specialty, coming in at No. 41 for orthopedics.
• That's down from No. 33 for orthopedics last year, though.

Worth noting: U.S. News has named VCU the top hospital in Richmond for 15 years.

The rest of the region's hospitals, in order of their state ranking, shook out as:

• 5th: Chippenham and Johnston-Willis Hospitals
• 10th: Bon Secours St. Mary's Hospital
• 12th: Henrico Doctors' Hospital, down from being No. 2 in Richmond and No. 9 in Virginia last year.

Zoom out: Inova Fairfax Hospital was ranked as the best hospital in Virginia.

• And its obstetrics and gynecology department was ranked No. 32 in the nation.