University of Utah Health Recognized by Vizient as 2026 Birnbaum Quality Leadership Top Performer
University of Utah Health Recognized by Vizient as 2026 Birnbaum Quality Leadership Top Performer
For the 17th consecutive year, University of Utah Health has been recognized as a top ten performer in the 2026 Bernard A. Birnbaum, MD, Quality Leadership Ranking by Vizient, Inc. U of U Health was ranked #8 of 122 participating comprehensive academic medical centers nationwide in the 2026 Vizient Quality and Accountability Ranking.
The comprehensive ranking recognizes academic medical centers for demonstrating excellence in delivering high-quality care based on the Vizient Quality and Accountability Study, conducted annually since 2005.
“This recognition reflects the extraordinary commitment our teams bring to their work every day,” said Dan Lundergan, System Chief Operating Officer, University of Utah Health and CEO of University of Utah Health Hospitals & Clinics. “Their dedication to delivering exceptional care, advancing innovation, and continually raising the bar is what makes achievements like this possible. I’m incredibly proud of our people and the shared commitment that keeps University of Utah Health among the nation’s top-performing health systems while making a meaningful difference for the patients and communities we serve.”
This year, 1,346 participating hospitals were segmented into seven cohorts for the Vizient Quality and Accountability Study. Cohorts are determined based on the level of care provided. University of Utah Health is in a cohort of Comprehensive Academic Medical Centers and is compared with hospitals that provide similar care nationally.
The study measures performance on the quality of patient care in six domains: safety, mortality, effectiveness, efficiency, patient centeredness, and variation in care. The study factors in measures from the Vizient Clinical Data Base and includes performance data from the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey and the CDC’s National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN).
The Vizient Quality and Accountability Study helps participating hospitals and health systems understand their performance against their peers and identifies structures and processes associated with high performance in quality and safety across a broad spectrum of patient care activity. The recognition period is for work spanning July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026.
In addition to its placement on the top performer list for the Comprehensive Academic Medical Center cohort, U of U Health also ranked #5 nationally in Vizient’s Ambulatory Care Quality and Accountability Awards. U of U Health was one of only five facilities to be recognized in this category, and it is the 12th year in a row that U of U Health has ranked in the top 10 nationally for its ambulatory quality of care.
“This recognition is a testament to the collaboration and shared commitment to quality across U of U Health,” said Kencee Graves, MD, Chief Medical Quality Officer at U of U Health. “Sustaining this level of performance reflects the dedication of people across our health system who continually look for ways to strengthen the care we provide. Together, we’ll continue raising the standard for quality and improving the health of the communities we serve.”
Recognitions were determined through the Vizient Ambulatory Quality and Accountability Study, which assesses data from participating facilities to measure performance in five domains: access to care, continuum of care, quality, efficiency, and variation in care.
This year, 74 facilities participated in the performance study for work spanning July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026. The composite scoring system uses practice- and patient-level data from the AAMC-Vizient Clinical Practice Solutions Center®, Vizient Access and Throughput data, and the Vizient Clinical Data Base.
“Delivering consistently high-quality care requires organizations to align clinical expertise, operational discipline, and a continuous focus on improvement,” said David Levine, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Vizient. “The hospitals recognized this year demonstrate what is possible when that commitment is embedded across the organization, resulting in better performance and, most importantly, better care for patients.”
About University of Utah Health
University of Utah Health is the state’s only academic health care system, providing leading-edge and compassionate care for a referral area that encompasses 10 percent of the US, including Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, and much of Nevada. A hub for health sciences research and education in the region, U of U Health has a $531 million research enterprise and trains the majority of Utah’s physicians, and more than 1,670 scientists and 1,460 health care providers each year at its Colleges of Health, Nursing, and Pharmacy and Schools of Dentistry and Medicine. With more than 27,000 employees, the system includes 12 community clinics and five hospitals: University Hospital, Huntsman Mental Health Institute, University Orthopaedic Center, the Craig H. Neilsen Rehabilitation Hospital, and Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah. For 17 straight years, U of U Health has ranked in the top-tier of US academic medical centers in the rigorous Vizient Quality and Accountability Study.
Media Contact:
Suzanne Winchester
Director of Public Affairs, University of Utah Health
Email: Suzanne.Winchester@hsc.utah.edu