Charité is crowned ‘Best German Hospital 2022'
Leading the field for ten years
The German weekly news magazine Focus placed Charité highest in its rankings of the best 100 German hospitals, crowning it ‘Best German Hospital’ for the tenth year running. In addition to its 78 outstanding specialist departments, Charité boasts 87 medical specialists who have been rated as among the leading physicians in their field. Charité is followed in the rankings by Munich’s LMU University Hospital in 2nd place and Lübeck’s University Medical Center Schleswig-Holstein in 3rd place. The 2022 Focus hospital rankings were based on a comparison of data from more than 1,600 hospitals and represent the most comprehensive review of hospital care within German-speaking countries.
Top position is a product of team effort
Prof. Dr. Heyo K. Kroemer, Charité’s Chief Executive Officer, emphasizes: “The Executive Board are delighted that Charité was able to retain its title as the ‘Best German Hospital'. 10 years at the top of the rankings is an achievement that is, above all, a true team effort. Our thanks therefore goes to our highly qualified members of staff, from all of Charité’s occupational groups, for their extraordinary commitment and hard work. We can take pride in that. This achievement also confirms that the best way to address the challenges of the future is to work with all our members of staff as we implement Charité’s 2030 Strategy.”
Outstanding Charité departments/units
The following specialties and therapeutic areas were ranked as ‘outstanding’: ophthalmology (corneal disease, refractive eye surgery & cataracts); obstetrics and gynecology (gynecological surgery, high-risk births and prenatal diagnostics); ‘skin, face and body’ (dermatology, plastic and reconstructive surgery, venous disease); cardiovascular medicine (vascular surgery, heart surgery, cardiology, cardiac arrhythmias); endocrinology and metabolism (diabetes, thyroid surgery); pediatrics (pediatric surgery, neonatology); cancer (bladder cancer, breast cancer, bowel cancer, gynecological oncology, skin cancer, brain tumors, testicular cancer, bone cancer, head and neck tumors, leukemia, lung cancer, lymphoma, kidney cancer, prostate cancer); ‘stomach, bowel and abdomen’ (gall bladder surgery, hernia surgery, benign prostate enlargement, anti-reflux surgery); neurology (dementias, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, stroke); orthopedics (hand surgery, hip surgery, knee surgery, shoulder surgery, sports medicine/orthopedic sports medicine, trauma surgery, spinal surgery); psychology/psychiatry (anxiety disorders and obsessive-compulsive disorder, depression, eating disorders, pain disorders); radiotherapy and nuclear medicine (nuclear medicine, radiotherapy); dentistry (dental departments).
For the first time, Focus also recommended departments specifically geared towards international patients. In addition to an assessment of the specialist departments involved, the evaluation process also extended to multilingualism and international outlook, services for international patients and the number of international patients. Charité received commendations for its specialist departments in the fields of cardiology, oncology and orthopedics.
About the methodology behind the rankings
A hospital’s place in the rankings is determined by the number of recommended specialist departments and the number of specialists considered leading in their fields. According to information provided by the Focus news magazine, the rankings review extended to all of Germany’s 1,682 public hospitals comprising a total of 14,193 specialist departments. For the first time, this comprehensive quality review was conducted by the independent research institute FactField. Large quantities of highly detailed data were prepared by the hospitals and subsequently submitted for analysis. According to Focus, additional sources of information included structured quality reports, details of certifications and accreditations, and questionnaires targeted at the relevant specialties and developed in conjunction with medical specialists. Focus also interviewed a total of 30,000 physicians working in private practice and specialist departments, asking them which hospitals they would select either for themselves or a member of their family. Hospital-based physicians were not permitted to nominate their own hospitals. Finally, the rankings review also took into account patient satisfaction data which had been collated using a number of sources.
