Adventist Health Bakersfield Named Among U.S. News & World Report’s 2026 Best Hospitals for Maternity Care

U.S. News & World Report has recognized Adventist Health Bakersfield as a 2026 High Performing hospital for Maternity Care for supporting safe births and quality care. This is the highest award a hospital can earn as part of U.S. News’ Best Hospitals for Maternity Care annual study, now in its fifth edition.

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.

Adventist Health Bakersfield earned a High Performing designation for its strong performance in key maternity care measures, including low rates of severe unexpected newborn complications, lower C-section rates among lower-risk pregnancies, high exclusive breast milk feeding rates, and birthing-friendly practices.

“This recognition is a reflection of the passion, training, and teamwork of our 120 registered nurses, our obstetricians, neonatologists, pediatricians, dedicated certified registered nurse anesthetists, and our entire Maternity Care team who show up every day to deliver babies and excellence, “says Kelly Zielsdorf, BSN, RN, Maternal Child Care multi-site director, Adventist Health Bakersfield.

The Maternity Care team at Adventist Health Bakersfield:

• Cares for an average of 2,500 expectant mothers every year
• Supports 9 labor and delivery rooms, 2 operating suites, 14 postpartum beds, and a Level 2C neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) with 9 beds and a 10-bed overflow nursery for newborns who require additional medical attention.

As a designated Baby-Friendly and Blue Distinction Center+, the team also touts the following numbers, which are signs of healthier births, healthier moms, and healthier babies:

• 26 percent fewer episiotomies
• 60 percent fewer elective early deliveries
• 17 percent lower C-section rates

“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.”