Awards and Distinctions
RWJBarnabas Health is the largest, most comprehensive academic health care system in New Jersey, having received many national and regional recognitions, including:
Overall
In 2024, U.S. News & World Report, the global authority in hospital rankings and consumer advice, has named Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital a Best Regional Hospital in NJ and is ranked #22 in the Metro area. The hospital achieved High Performing recognition for 11 common adult conditions and procedures, and together with Rutgers Cancer Institute, High Performing recognition for the Adult Specialty of Cancer. RWJUH Hamilton was also named as a High Performing Hospital for Heart Failure and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.
Six RWJBarnabas Health facilities have been recognized among the 2024 – 2025 Best Hospitals for Maternity Care, including Community Medical Center, Monmouth Medical Center, Newark Beth Israel Medical Center, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, RWJUH Somerset and Trinitas Regional Medical Center. The prestigious list identifies hospitals that provide high-quality maternity care for uncomplicated pregnancies.
RWJBarnabas Health children’s hospitals were named among the nation’s Best Children’s Hospitals for 2024/2025 by U.S. News & World Report. The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital at RWJUH ranked #34 nationally for orthopedics and ranked #47 for urology. The Urology ranking recognizes a four-hospital practice that is based at BMSCH but that also provides care at three other RWJBarnabas Health hospitals – Children’s Hospital of New Jersey at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center, McMullen Children’s Center at Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center, and Unterberg Children’s Hospital at Monmouth Medical Center. Additionally, BMSCH was ranked #2 in NJ and #15 in the Mid-Atlantic Region.
In May of 2025, seven RWJBarnabas Health facilities were awarded “A” Hospital Safety Score including Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center, Community Medical Center, Monmouth Medical Center, Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus, RWJUH Hamilton, RWJUH Rahway and RWJUH Somerset. It was RWJUH Rahway’s eighth straight A rating and the fifth in a row for both CMC and MMCSC.
In 2025, Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center and RWJUH Somerset were named among America’s 250 Best Hospitals for 2025 by Healthgrades, the #1 site Americans use when searching for a doctor or hospital. This achievement reflects the hospitals’ unwavering commitment to exceptional patient care and puts them top 5% of hospitals nationwide for overall clinical performance. CBMC ranked first in NJ and among the top 5% in the nation for both Cardiology and Cardiac Care and third in the state for Pulmonary Care and Gastrointestinal Surgery. RWJUH Somerset ranked second in NJ for both Gastrointestinal Surgery and Medical, and third for Cardiology and GI Care.
Numerous facilities received the Gold Seal of Approval by the Joint Commission for various programs including joint replacement; disease-specific certifications in acute coronary syndrome, cardiac rehabilitation, and heart failure; advanced certification in palliative care; bariatric surgery; and stroke program.
In 2023, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital was named to Money’s inaugural list of Best Hospitals for Bariatric Surgery. Monmouth Medical Center was named to Money’s inaugural list of the Best Hospitals in America, created in partnership with The Leapfrog Group. Monmouth Medical Center, Newark Beth Israel Medical Center and RWJUH Somerset were named to Money’s 2022 Best Hospitals for Maternity Care list – among just 259 hospitals to receive the award.
Several practices within the Combined Medical Group of RWJBarnabas Health and Rutgers Health received the National Committee for Quality Assurance Patient-Centered Medical Home Recognition, which emphasizes the use of systematic, patient-centered, coordinated care that supports access, communication and patient involvement.
In 2025, RWJBarnabas Health was awarded with two Human Experience (HX) Awards from Press Ganey, the global leader in healthcare experience solutions and services. Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital has been honored with the Human Experience NDNQI® Award for Outstanding Nursing Quality® and is just one of just seven academic medical centers in the country to be honored by Press Ganey for outstanding nursing quality and fostering a culture rooted in improving patient safety and care. Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center NICU has been honored with Human Experience Pinnacle of Excellence Award®.
Six RWJBarnabas Health facilities have achieved Magnet recognition for excellence in nursing. RWJUH New Brunswick received this recognition six consecutive times – making it one of only seven institutions globally to achieve this distinction. In 2024, Monmouth Medical Center became the first hospital in NJ and the 11th in the country to earn Magnet with Distinction.
In 2023, RWJBarnabas Health was granted accreditation for nursing continuing professional development from the ANCC for its commitment to using evidence-based criteria when developing high-quality educational activities that promote the professional growth of nurses.
In 2025, Monmouth Medical Center was named by Newsweek as one of the World’s Best Hospitals, marking the fourth consecutive year. Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center and Monmouth Medical Center were both named Newsweek’s 2023 list of America’s Best Maternity Care Hospitals. In addition, Children’s Specialized Hospital has been recognized on Newsweek’s 2024 list of World’s Best Specialized Hospitals and RWJUH New Brunswick also received Newsweek America’s Best award for Ambulatory Surgery Centers in NJ in 2024 for the third year in a row. Monmouth Medical Center and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital have also been included in Newsweek’s list of America’s Best-In-State Hospitals for 2025.
In 2023, ten RWJBarnabas Health facilities were awarded Gold recognition for their Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs from the New Jersey Department of Health; Monmouth Medical Center has continued to receive Gold since the establishment of the awards program in 2019.
Specialty Care
Rutgers Cancer Institute, together with RWJBarnabas Health, is New Jersey’s only National Cancer Institute (NCI) – designated Comprehensive Care Center – recognized for its clinical and scientific research leadership.
In 2024, four RWJBarnabas Health facilities have achieved the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines® – Stroke Gold Plus quality achievement award for their commitment to ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines, ultimately leading to more lives saved and reduced disability. These facilities include Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center, Jersey City Medical Center, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, and RWJUH Somerset.
In 2024, RWJBH Mobile Health received the American Heart Association Mission Lifeline EMS Gold Award. This award is given to an elite group of prehospital providers for their commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of care, ensuring that individuals experiencing a heart attack or stroke receive treatment according to the latest nationally accepted evidence-based guidelines.
In 2025, RWJBarnabas Health received a second advanced comprehensive stroke program certification from The Joint Commission (TJC). Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center has earned its first Gold Seal of Approval for Advanced Certification in Comprehensive Stroke Center, a symbol of quality that reflects a healthcare organization’s commitment to providing safe and quality patient care. Offered in collaboration with the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, achieving Comprehensive Stroke Center (CSC) Certification shows the hospital’s dedication to raising the bar for performance. It is the highest level of certification for hospitals with specific abilities to receive and treat the most complex stroke cases.
In 2024, cancer programs at several RWJBarnabas Health facilities, in partnership with Rutgers Cancer Institute, were granted Three-Year Accreditation from the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer (CoC). Facilities that received this accreditation include Jersey City Medical Center, Community Medical Center, RWJUH Somerset, Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus, and RWJUH Hamilton.
Overall
RWJBarnabas Health was again named to the 2023 GHX Millennium Club, which recognizes healthcare provider and supplier organizations that generate more than one million automated transactions annually through the GHX Exchange.
Thirteen RWJBarnabas Health facilities were named to CHIME Healthcare’s 2024 Most Wired Survey. Ten RWJBarnabas facilities including Clara Maas Medical Center, Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center, Jersey City Medical Center, Monmouth Medical Center, Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus, Newark Beth Israel Medical Center, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, RWJUH Hamilton and RWJUH Somerset earned the highest-possible designation, Level 10. RWJBarnabas Health Ambulatory Care Center, Trinitas Regional Medical Center and the RWJBarnabas Health Medical Group scored Level 9 designations, while Children’s Specialized Hospital earned Level 6 honors. Trinitas also received special recognition for having the most improved score overall.
The RWJBarnabas Health Foundation has achieved High Performer status in the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy’s 2023 Report on Giving. Fewer than 50 organizations across the US and Canada have been recognized for this award in 2023. High Performers are those whose performance is among the top 25% of all Report on Giving survey participants and we were recognized in two categories: Overall Revenue and Health System.
In 2024, ten RWJBarnabas Health facilities were recognized as “Leaders in LGBTQ Healthcare Equality” by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation – the educational arm of America's largest civil rights organization – recognizing healthcare institutions that are leaders in efforts to offer equitable care to LGBTQ+ patients by evaluating inclusive policies and practices related to LGBTQ patients, visitors and employees.
Workforce
In 2024, RWJBarnabas Health was recognized as one of America’s Greatest Workplaces. RWJBarnabas Health was also recognized by Newsweek as one of:
- America’s Greatest Workplaces for Diversity for the second consecutive year
- America’s Greatest Workplaces for Women
- America’s Greatest Workplaces for Mental Wellbeing
- America’s Greatest Workplaces for Patients and Families
RWJBarnabas Health been named one of the 2024 Best Places to Work for People with Disabilities, achieving top scores on the 2024 Disability Equality Index®. The Disability Equality Index is the world’s most comprehensive benchmarking tool for Fortune 1000 companies to measure disability workplace inclusion within their organization and to assess performance across industry sectors.
RWJBarnabas Health is a CEO Cancer Gold Standard employer, an accreditation awarded by the CEO Roundtable on Cancer, for its dedication and commitment to maintaining a high standard of excellence in cancer prevention, early detection, and quality care for its employees and families.
Additional Awards and Distinctions
RWJBarnabas Health has been recognized for excellence across our service lines, receiving prestigious awards and distinctions in the following categories:
Excellence in Emergency Care
- American College of Emergency Physicians Geriatric Emergency Department Accreditation (January 2025): Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus has been awarded Geriatric Emergency Department Accreditation (GEDA) from the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP). This accreditation program is an ACEP-governed national accreditation program dedicated to improving the emergency department care of adults 65 and older.
- National Recognition for Emergency Stroke Care (July 2024): Community Medical Center was one of 39 national hospitals recently recognized by the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) for notable achievement in emergency care for stroke treatment.
- Excellence in Emergency Care (October 2023): RWJBarnabas Health Emergency Departments were named National Certification Champion Award winners by the Board of Certification for Emergency Nursing (BCEN). The health system received the 2023 BCEN National Certification Champion Award based on its commitment to emergency, trauma, and transport nursing clinical excellence and professionalism through national nursing specialty certification.
Excellence in Cancer Care
- Recognition by Becker’s Hospital Review’s 100 Hospitals and Health Systems with Great Oncology Programs (November 2024): RWJBarnabas Health, together with Rutgers Cancer Institute, has been named among Becker’s Hospital Review’s 100 Hospitals and Health Systems with Great Oncology Programs for 2024, the second consecutive year. The list honors health systems that have earned national recognition for their work in driving forward advanced cancer care and research, as well as cancer centers with internationally known specialists, capacity for clinical trials, and exceptional safety ratings.
- Jacqueline M. Wilentz Breast Center Certifications: The Jacqueline M. Wilentz Breast Center at Monmouth Medical Center was certified as a quality breast center of excellence by the National Quality Measures for Breast Centers, one of only the first two NJ facilities to achieve this top certification level. Additionally, it was named a Breast Imaging Center of Excellence by the American College of Radiology’s (ACR) Commission on Quality and Safety and the Commission on Breast Imaging, being the first facility in NJ and 20th in the US to earn this designation.
Excellence in Cardiac Care
- Recognition by Becker’s Hospital Review’s 100 Hospitals and Health Systems with Great Heart Programs (July 2024): RWJBarnabas Health is home to one of the top ten largest heart transplant programs in total transplanted adult heart volume in the nation, and the most comprehensive pediatric cardiology and cardiac surgery programs in NJ. The system’s four principal heart centers—Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center, RWJUH New Brunswick, Newark Beth Israel Medical Center, and Jersey City Medical Center—are each individually award-winning cardiac hospitals with an integrated and expert team of cardiac specialists.
Excellence in Orthopedic Care
- Advanced Orthopedic Certification (November 2024): Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Hamilton (RWJUH Hamilton and its Orthopedic Center of Excellence received reaccreditations by The Joint Commission (TJC), the nation’s largest health accreditation agency, for Advanced Certification in Spine Surgery, Advanced Total Hip & Knee Replacement, and Primary Stroke Center Certification.
- Recognition by Becker’s Hospital Review’s 100 Hospitals and Health Systems with Great Orthopedic Programs (October 2023): RWJBarnabas Health has been recognized for its leading orthopedic care, offering minimally invasive treatments, forward-thinking research, and breakthrough clinical trials that significantly improve patient outcomes.
Excellence in Bariatric Care
- Accreditation as Comprehensive Centers for Bariatric and Metabolic Surgery (July 2023): Eight facilities were accredited as comprehensive centers for bariatric and metabolic surgery by the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Accreditation and Quality Improvement Program of the American College of Surgeons. MBSAQIP accredits inpatient and outpatient bariatric surgery centers in the U.S. and Canada that have undergone an independent, voluntary, and rigorous peer evaluation in accordance with nationally recognized bariatric surgical standards.
Excellence in Pediatric Care
- Excellence in Pediatric and Adolescent Robotic Surgery (February 2023): The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital achieved the first-ever Surgical Review Corporation (SRC) accreditation in 2023 as a Center of Excellence in Pediatric and Robotic Surgery in the United States. This designation acknowledges BMSCH’s commitment to delivering quality patient care and safety.
Excellence in Health Equity
- Corporate Responsibility Award by Garden State Equality (October 2021): RWJBarnabas Health was honored for its commitment to providing culturally sensitive, compassionate, and inclusive care for the LGBTQ community through ongoing initiatives.
- NJBIZ Empowering Women (November 2024): RWJBarnabas Health was recognized as one of the 2024 Empowering Women honorees by NJBIZ. This esteemed award celebrates organizations across New Jersey that demonstrate a profound commitment to empowering and uplifting women in the workplace.
Excellence in Nursing
- NCPD Premier Award by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (October 2024): RWJBarnabas Health received a 2024 NCPD Premier Award by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) Nursing Continuing Professional Development (NCPD) Accreditation Program™. Recipients are exceptional organizations that successfully leveraged NCPD interventions to demonstrate a return on investment that aligns with the organization’s strategic goals. The NCPD Premier Award recognizes accredited organizations that excel in providing high-quality nursing continuing professional development (NCPD) activities.
- NICHE (Nurses Improving Care for Health system Elders) Recognition (January 2023): Nine facilities were recognized as NICHE hospitals by NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing, acknowledging the hospitals' specialized care for older adult patients and dedication to patient- and family-centered care.
Additional Recognitions
- Becker’s Hospital Review 64 Simulation and Education Programs to Know (February 2025): RWJBarnabas Health has been named to Becker’s Hospital Review’s 64 Simulation and Education Programs to Know list for 2025. The list celebrates hospitals and health systems with exceptional simulation and education programs across the U.S. The organizations on the list are dedicated to advancing their workforce and service lines through state-of-the-art technology and lifelike simulation programs.
- Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Recognized Among 2024’s “Great Hospitals in America” by Becker’s Hospital Review (August 2024): Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital was featured on Becker’s Hospital Review’s list of “Great Hospitals in America” for 2024, highlighting its top-tier clinical work, patient safety, innovative advancements, research, educational excellence, and high levels of patient satisfaction.
- Center of Excellence in Robotic Surgery (August 2024): Community Medical Center recently achieved reaccreditation from Surgical Review Corporation as a Center of Excellence in Robotic Surgery, recognizing the hospital's commitment and high standard of delivery of quality patient care and safety.
- Hospitals of Excellence (August 2023): Children’s Specialized Hospital, Monmouth Medical Center, Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus, and RWJUH Somerset were named to Becker’s list of Great Community Hospitals, recognizing their outstanding contributions to community healthcare.
For a list of the awards and recognitions at our facilities, please click on the corresponding links below:
- Children's Specialized Hospital
- Clara Maass Medical Center
- Community Medical Center
-
Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center
(formerly Saint Barnabas Medical Center) - Jersey City Medical Center
- Monmouth Medical Center
- Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus
- Newark Beth Israel Medical Center
- Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Hamilton
- Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital
- Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Rahway
- Robert Wood University Hospital Somerset
- Trinitas Regional Medical Center