Why Choose Rush?

U.S. News & World Report Honor Roll Rankings

Rush University Medical Center has earned a top spot on U.S. News & World Report’s annual Best Hospitals Honor Roll for the third year in a row. Rush holds the 20th spot among the more than 4,500 U.S. hospitals evaluated, with ten Rush programs ranked among the nation’s very best.

The following are the Medical Center’s ranked programs:

• Neurology and Neurosurgery — 4th (best in Illinois)
• Orthopedics — 5th (best in Illinois)
• Gynecology — 13th (best in Illinois)
• Geriatrics — 14th
• Urology — 14th
• Pulmonary Care and Lung Surgery — 20th
• Cardiology and Heart Surgery — 25th
• Cancer — 31st
• Ear, Nose and Throat — 34th (best in Illinois)
• Gastroenterology and GI Surgery — 40th

  Rush in the Community

  Community service is at the heart of what we do at Rush. Through the Rush Community Service Initiatives Program (RCSIP), there is an opportunity for Rush University students, faculty, residents, fellows and staff to use their distinct skills and talents to make a difference in our community and beyond.

  RCSIP started in 1991 and has grown into a robust interprofessional program with volunteers from all four of Rush University’s colleges. RCSIP provides services to more than 10,000 community members annually through programs that focus on the following:

  • Providing health care to people in underserved communities
  • Educating the community about healthy living and disease prevention and management
  • Training and educating young people about the wide range of career opportunities in health sciences
  Learn more about community engagement at Rush:

  • Rush Community Services Initiative Program
  • Center for Community Health Equity

  Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

  Our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion is at the center of everything we do and everyone we serve. An inclusive community of faculty, staff, residents and students are here to support you through your training and education journey at Rush. The resident-run Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee provides mentoring, networking, advising and professional development opportunities for residents, fellows and medical students.

  You can also create connections through affinity groups such as the Student National Medical Association, Latino Medical Student Association, Interprofessional Minority Student Association and RushPRIDE and many more. Networking events, such as the annual Diversity & Inclusion Boat Cruise on Lake Michigan and quarterly social events, are hosted by the diversity and inclusion team in the Office of Integrated Medical Education, and provide the opportunity for informal networking and fellowship in a relaxed environment away from the Rush campus.

  Learn more about diversity, equity and inclusion at Rush:

  • Office of Community Health Equity and Engagement
  • Rush University Affinity Groups
  • Culture of Inclusion at Rush University Medical Center
  • HEED Award for Excellence in Diversity

  Mental Health and Wellness

  

  The Rush Center for Clinical Wellness was established in 2020 to create a culture of wellness and provide expanded mental health support services for all students, trainees, faculty and staff at Rush. The center is meant to be a safe space to improve the well-being of its visitors while creating an optimal healing environment.

  All residents and fellows are encouraged to utilize the center and have access professional counseling services at no charge, year-round, for a variety of concerns. You may take advantage of individual and couples’ psychotherapy with doctoral-level clinical psychologist to discuss issues ranging from managing stress and anxiety to depression and relationship problems. In addition, the center offers wellness coaching and mini wellness retreats to help you identify and achieve your wellness goals.

  Joy S. Sclamberg, senior associate dean of graduate medical education, and the Center for Clinical Wellness are highlighted in this video feature.

  
  In addition to the wellness center, the Rush Wellness Assistance Program provides a comprehensive wellness program to you and your family. All services used through the program and free and confidential. Program highlights include:

  • Work: Professional and personal development through “skillbuilders” — free 30-45-minute online tutorials that address numerous topics including emotional well-being, achieving personal goals, managing stress, time management, the power of resilience, and much more.
  • Life: 24/7 Confidential, short-term counseling services for all employees, students and their families — at no cost.
  • Home: Connecting Rush community members to pre-screened services for child and eldercare, legal support and financial planning.

  Rush’s Response to COVID-19

  When Rush University Medical Center opened its hospital Tower in 2012, it became the first Chicago area hospital specifically designed to provide treatment for an outbreak of an infectious disease, such COVID-19. As one of only 35 hospitals recognized by the Centers for Disease Control as a leader in disease treatment, we are uniquely equipped to meet patient needs, as well as others who may contract this novel coronavirus.

  The Rush Tower has 40 negative pressure rooms, among the highest in Chicago. These assets are critical because it means that when the door to the room opens air from the hall moves into the room, not from the room to the hall, keeping infectious air particles in the room.

  The Rush Emergency Department is divided into three 20-bed units — each of which can be isolated with separate air handling. Every ED bed is in its own room with a door, not a curtain, that further isolates each and every patient.

  

  The Emergency Department has an entry bay for ambulances that was converted into a forward triage area in early March 2020. The area also included a controlled entry point with a separate route into the hospital and negative airflow – all to ensure non-coronavirus related patients never come into to contact with a COVID-19 patient or any related contamination.

  Within two hours, we can convert a wing of hospital into a negative pressure ward to accommodate more patients.

  Because of this unique approach to design, construction and staff, Rush quickly became a critical community resource in the fight against COVID-19. We were able to not only care for the COVID patients who came directly Rush, but also accept transfer patients from safety net hospitals across the region who were not equipped to provide care for severe cases of COVID.

  Our preparedness for this type of public health crisis quickly positioned us as leaders – both nationally and internationally – in infectious disease readiness.

  In December 2020, our house staff were included among the first wave of medical professionals to receive COVID-19 vaccinations when the vaccine became available to Rush. See their stories

  Rush in the news:

  • Preparing for the worst in a time of pandemic, hospitals prepare for surge of patients
  • Doctors and patients turn to telemedicine in the coronavirus outbreak
  • ‘Proning’ Is a Promising Treatment for Coronavirus—Here’s How It Works

  Additional resources:

  • COVID-19 research at Rush
  • COVID-19 information for the Rush University community
  • Rush University Medical Center COVID response playbook
  • Rush University Medical Center COVID-19 information and resources