By Adam Pope | UAB News
UAB Hospital, the flagship hospital of the University of Alabama at Birmingham Health System, is now the fifth-largest hospital in the nation, up three spots from 2025, according to Becker’s Hospital Review. UAB Hospital has 1,400 hospital beds.
“When UAB’s capacity expands in any area of our mission, so does the positive impact we have on improving and saving lives,” said UAB President Ray Watts. “Earning a place among the nation’s largest five hospitals is a proud moment for UAB Hospital. It reflects the unwavering support of the University of Alabama System Board of Trustees and the outstanding leadership of UAB Health System CEO Dawn Bulgarella, as well as the caliber of our faculty and staff across UAB Medicine who are responsible for and share in this success.”
In 2025, UAB Hospital cared for a record 929,021 unique patients.
“UAB Hospital is the only hospital in Alabama designated as a Level 1 Trauma Center by the American College of Surgeons, which reflects the extraordinary level of care patients receive here,” Bulgarella said. “Our dedicated and talented providers cared for more patients last year than ever before, and our strategic growth means that — this year and into the future — we will be able to serve even more patients with the world-class care we offer. Becoming the fifth-largest hospital in the country is meaningful because it means we touch more lives.”
Best in state
UAB Hospital was also named in Newsweek’s list of the World’s Best Hospitals 2026, claiming the top spot in Alabama, and Newsweek’s World’s Best Specialized Hospitals for 2026, with Cardiology ranked No. 105 globally and No. 142 in Cardiac Surgery, underscoring the hospital’s continued excellence in cardiovascular care and surgical innovation.
UAB Medicine has once again been named one of the nation’s leaders in the use of information technology in health care by the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives. Both UAB Hospital and UAB Medicine’s acute and ambulatory clinics were cited for achieving Level 8 status in CHIME’s 2025 Digital Health Most Wired survey.
New facilities
With sweeping views, cutting-edge therapy gyms and 134 patient beds, UAB’s new $156.7 million inpatient rehabilitation pavilion is transforming recovery for Alabamians and patients across the region.
The new facility is designed for real‑world recovery with abundant natural light, indoor and outdoor therapy spaces, a rooftop garden, terrain park, simulated streetscape, recreational features, and advanced equipment such as overhead lifts, robotic devices, virtual‑reality gait systems and a multisensory room for patients with brain injuries. It also includes therapy gyms with city views, private treatment areas, family-friendly spaces, outdoor terraces, convenient patient drop-off and the continued support of Topgun, UAB’s facility dog.
UAB Medicine is undertaking a $73 million expansion of the Emergency Department — supported by $50 million from the State of Alabama — that will add 59 new exam rooms to address unprecedented demand. At the time it was announced, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey said, “This significant expansion is an investment in vital public services for our state. I’m proud to support allocation of funds to help address the critical need for more emergency services and look forward to working with UAB further to make a positive impact on the welfare of our state.”
Unique to UAB
In addition to being an Adult Level 1 Trauma Center, UAB has a Comprehensive Transplant Institute that is home to the state’s leading organ transplant program that continues to remove barriers for lifesaving transplantation by utilizing robotic-assisted kidney transplants and joining the National Kidney Registry. Cutting-edge cancer treatment is provided through Alabama’s only National Cancer Institute-designated O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center.
The hospital is also home to a Level 4 Regional Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, which provided lifesaving care to the Guinness World Records title holders for the most premature quadruplets.
