NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Dec. 9, 2025) – Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital Midtown has been named as a 2026 High Performing hospital for Maternity Care by U.S. News & World Report. The hospital is the only facility in Middle Tennessee to earn this prestigious designation, which is the highest award U.S. News gives for maternity services. The recognition from the global authority in hospital rankings and consumer advice highlights the hospital’s century-long reputation as a leading and trusted destination for families seeking safe, personal and evidence-based maternity care.
The High Performing designation reflects strong performance across key quality and safety indicators including, lower rates of C-sections in lower-risk pregnancies, reduced incidences of severe unexpected newborn complications, high exclusive breast milk feeding rates and a commitment to birthing friendly practices.
A Statewide Leader in Care for Moms and Babies
Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital Midtown delivers more babies than any other hospital in Tennessee and is the region’s leading choice for maternity care. As part of the Ascension Saint Thomas system, which welcomes one in three Middle Tennessee babies, Midtown offers a full continuum of services designed to support individualized and compassionate care before, during and after birth. Key offerings include:
● Comprehensive OB-GYN care with dedicated 24/7 obstetrics and gynecology emergency care
● Level III neonatal intensive care (NICU)
● Level 4 maternity care which provides comprehensive care for the most complex pregnancies
● Certified nurse midwives and an experienced team of OB physicians, neonatal nurses and maternal fetal medicine specialists
● Support programs such as childbirth education, breastfeeding consultations, postpartum care and personalized birth planning with a dedicated birth designer
● Modern labor, delivery and recovery suites that provide comfort for parents and families
“At Ascension Saint Thomas, our goal is to ensure every mother and baby receive the safest and highest quality care possible,” said Dr. Shubhada Jagasia, CEO of Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital. “Earning a ‘High Performing’ distinction from U.S. News is a meaningful validation of our Midtown team’s unwavering dedication to mothers, babies, and their families.”
Trusted Resource for Expectant Parents
U.S. News began evaluating maternity care hospitals in 2021, rating hospitals that provide labor and delivery services and submit detailed data to the publication for analysis. For the 2026 edition, approximately 900 hospitals nationwide submitted maternity data for evaluation. Best Hospitals for Maternity Care ratings are intended to assist expectant parents, in consultation with their prenatal care providers, in making informed decisions about where to receive maternity services that best meet their family’s needs.
“Hospitals designated as a U.S. News Best Hospital for Maternity Care are national leaders. This recognition means they are consistently hitting crucial patient safety benchmarks compared to other hospitals,” said Jennifer Winston, Ph.D., health data scientist at U.S. News. “It’s a clear signal to expectant parents about where the highest standards of care are being practiced – when parents see this designation, they can be assured they are choosing a hospital dedicated to exceptional, evidence-based maternity care.”
For more information, visit Best Hospitals for Maternity Care.
About Ascension Saint Thomas Ascension Saint Thomas is a faith-based, nonprofit health system with a 125-year history of delivering personalized care, with special attention to those most vulnerable. The system includes 18 hospitals and 320 sites of care across 45 counties in Tennessee, including affiliated joint ventures, medical practices, clinics, and specialty facilities. With more than 13,000 associates, Ascension Saint Thomas serves millions of patients annually. It is part of Ascension, one of the largest Catholic health systems in the U.S., with approximately 99,000 associates, 23,000 aligned providers, and 121 hospitals. In FY2024, Ascension provided $2.1 billion in care for those living in poverty and other community benefit programs. Visit www.ascension.org. About U.S. News & World Report U.S. News & World Report is the global leader for journalism that empowers consumers, citizens, business leaders and policy officials to make confident decisions in all aspects of their lives and communities. A multifaceted media company, U.S. News provides unbiased rankings, independent reporting and analysis, and consumer advice to millions of people on USNews.com each month. A pillar in Washington for more than 90 years, U.S. News is the trusted home for in-depth and exclusive insights on education, health, politics, the economy, personal finance, travel, automobiles, real estate, careers and consumer products and services.
