Fifty-five of America's best large and midsize hospitals and health systems were named among Forbes' best employers for 2024.
To compile its annual lists, released Feb. 13, the publication collaborated with market research firm Statista and surveyed 170,000 American workers. Companies between 1,000 and 5,000 employees were ranked as "midsize" employers, while those with more than 5,000 employees were listed separately as "large" employers. Respondents were asked to evaluate their employer on criteria including working hours, salary, training and promotion opportunities, workload expectations, mental health benefits and management diversity. They were also asked if they would recommend their employer to others.
Responses were collected from current employees and employees who had worked at the company in the last two years. Workers who were familiar with a company through friends, family or peers, and worked in the same industry, were given the opportunity to rate companies they did not work for themselves — though their scores were given lower weight.
For the first time, Forbes also included data from the past three years to identify companies that consistently rank well. Most recent data was given the most weight, according to the publication. Read more about the methodology here.
The 600 highest-scoring large and midsize companies were included in Forbes' ranking, sorted by industry. Notably, half of the top 10 large employers were hospitals and health systems — three of which are specific to children's care.
Rick Merrill, president and CEO of Cook Children's Health Care System in Fort Worth, Texas, told Forbes that pediatric care "is about as meaningful and fulfilling as it gets in any career or job that you could choose," and "drives me to make the best and most thoughtful decisions for everyone entrusted in our care, along with all of our employees." The health system ranked third out of large companies in all industries and first among its healthcare competitors.
These 55 hospitals and health systems made Forbes' lists and are listed alongside their cross-industry ranking out of 600 and their headquarters.
Note: These lists do not include home health companies, staffing agencies or foundations affiliated with health systems.
Best large employers:
3. Cook Children's Health Care System
4. Children's Hospital Colorado (Aurora)
7. Houston Methodist
9. St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (Memphis, Tenn.)
10. The University of Kansas Health System (Kansas City)
25. Children's Healthcare of Atlanta
34. NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital (New York City)
36. Community Health Network (Indianapolis)
38. Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (New York City)
42. Nationwide Children's Hospital (Columbus, Ohio)
44. Mayo Clinic (Rochester, Minn.)
51. UC Davis Health (Sacramento, Calif.)
53. Cedars-Sinai Health System (Los Angeles)
60. Roper St. Francis (Charleston, S.C.)
63. MD Anderson Cancer Center (Houston)
66. Boston Medical Center
70. Baptist Health South Florida (Coral Gables)
71. Cincinnati Children's
83. Tampa General Hospital
84. Main Line Health (Radnor Township, Pa.)
96. UCLA Health (Los Angeles)
99. Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (Boston)
107. Sarasota (Fla.) Memorial Hospital
117. University of Virginia Health System (Charlottesville)
124. Norton Healthcare (Louisville, Ky.)
139. The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center (Columbus)
141. Saint Francis Health System (Tulsa)
152. University of Utah Health Care (Salt Lake City)
155. Texas Health Resources (Arlington)
158. Boston Children's Hospital
159. Gundersen Health System (La Crosse, Wis.)
161. The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
Best midsize employers:
5. Jupiter (Fla.) Medical Center
12. Shriners Hospitals for Children (Tampa)
17. Pikeville (Ky.) Medical Center
22. Hendricks Regional Health (Danville, Ind.)
25. Oklahoma Heart Hospital (Oklahoma City)
40. Woman's Hospital (Baton Rouge, La.)
46. Boone Hospital Center (Columbia, Mo.)
69. University of Tennessee Medical Center (Knoxville)
94. NCH Healthcare (Naples, Fla.)
108. Stanford (Calif.) Children's Health
123. Concord (N.H.) Hospital
138. Bellin Health (Green Bay, Wis.)
144. Mercy Medical Center (Baltimore)
146. Eisenhower Medical Center (Rancho Mirage, Calif.)
149. Stillwater (Okla.) Medical Center
150. MaineGeneral Health (Augusta)
155. Children's Hospital of the King's Daughters (Norfolk, Va.)
158. Silver Cross Hospital (New Lenox, Ill.)
174. Evangelical Community Hospital (Lewisburg, Pa.)
182. Southwest General Health Center (Middleburg Heights, Ohio)
183. Lake Regional Health System (Osage Beach, Mo.)
184. Children's Nebraska (Omaha)
185. Glen Falls (N.Y.) Hospital