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Quick Facts:
Fort Smith,
Northwest AR
Six of Mercy’s rural hospitals, including two in Arkansas, have been included in The Chartis Center for Rural Health’s 2026 lists of the 100 top performing rural hospitals across the country.
Mercy Hospital Berryville and Mercy Hospital Paris in Arkansas are named to this year’s Top 100 Critical Access Hospitals list, joining two other Mercy hospitals in Oklahoma. In addition, two Mercy hospitals in Oklahoma and Missouri were named among the Top 100 Rural and Community Hospitals by Chartis.
A critical access hospital is a small rural facility designated by Medicare to improve access to care, capped at 25 inpatient beds and required to maintain 24/7 emergency services, while a community hospital provides a broad range of general medical services to the local population. This year’s award winners in each category can be found here.
Rural hospitals deliver essential, often lifesaving care to communities that would otherwise face long travel times, limited access to specialists and significant health disparities. Each hospital on Chartis’ Top 100 lists has demonstrated consistently strong patient outcomes, high operational efficiency and resilience in the face of unique geographic and economic challenges.
“Being named one of the nation’s Top 100 rural hospitals is a testament to the unwavering dedication of our caregivers, who consistently deliver exceptional care close to home,” said Michael Nolewaka, Mercy’s vice president of patient care services. “This recognition reinforces Mercy’s commitment to strengthening rural health care, investing in our communities and ensuring patients can access high‑quality services without leaving the region.”
"Mercy Hospital Berryville is truly at the heart of our community, not just as a place for health care but for hope and healing," said Tom Guhr, administrator of Mercy Hospital Berryville. "Our mission has always been to provide exceptional and compassionate care. Being recognized as a top-performing hospital is thanks to the hard work of our caregivers and their dedication to providing the best care possible to our community."
The Chartis awards are based on the results of the Chartis Rural Hospital Performance INDEX®, which recognizes outstanding performance among the nation’s rural hospitals. Now in its 16th year, the INDEX is the industry’s most comprehensive and objective assessment of rural hospital performance. Leveraging a methodology that utilizes publicly available data, the INDEX is used nationwide by rural hospitals, health systems with rural affiliates, hospital associations, and state offices of rural health to measure and monitor performance across a variety of areas impacting hospital operations, quality, patient perspective and finance.
“The delivery of care within rural communities is more complex today than at any point in recent memory,” said Michael Topchik, executive director of The Chartis Center for Rural Health. “This year’s Top 100 Critical Access Hospitals and Top 100 Rural & Community Hospitals have emerged as true leaders who are committed to their mission through a powerful combination of resilience, dedication and innovation. We’re delighted to recognize this year’s winners and celebrate their Top 100 status.”
