A new report from the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine — a nonprofit of 12,000 providers —identifies hazardous and healthy hospital food environments across the nation.
The committee obtained patient menus from 24 U.S. hospitals, analyzed the menus and then ranked the hospitals based on whether patient menus offer healthful fruits, vegetables, whole grains, cholesterol-free entrées and soy milk. Hospitals also earned points for Meatless Mondays, gardens and farmers markets, according to the committee's report.
Hospitals lost points if they have contracts with fast food restaurants such as Chick-fil-A, McDonald's and Wendy's.
According to the report, University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson comes in last place with a score of 62 percent. The medical center hosts both a Chick-fil-A and McDonald's.
Hospitals in the committee's report represent public and private hospitals ranging in size from dozens of beds to more than 1,000 beds. The final selection of hospitals was drawn from a list of 262 hospitals surveyed, including the 50 largest public hospitals and at least one hospital in every state.
Here are the bottom 12 hospitals and their patient food score.
Children's Hospital of Georgia/Georgia Regents Medical Center (Augusta) - 75 percent
University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics (Iowa City) - 74 percent
Greenville (S.C.) Memorial Hospital - 73 percent
Pocono Medical Center (East Stroudsburg, Pa.) - 72 percent
Grady Memorial Hospital (Atlanta) - 71 percent
Broward General Medical Center (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) - 69 percent
Virginia Commonwealth University Hospital (Richmond) - 68 percent
Parkland Memorial Hospital (Dallas) - 67 percent
Ben Taub General Hospital (Houston) - 67 percent
Brookings (S.D.) Hospital - 66 percent
University Hospital (Augusta, Ga.) - 65 percent
University of Mississippi Medical Center (including menu from Batson Children's Hospital) (Jackson) - 62 percent
More articles on population health:
Ad campaign targets hospitals for ties to Chick-fil-A, other fast-food chains: 5 things to know
7 things to know about the state of population health and the gaps in progress