The Portuguese hospital was recognised as second-best in the Grand Hospital Award category, with more than 750 applications submitted across the IHF Awards’ categories.
Cascais Hospital has won the Silver Winner award at the Grand Hospital Award 2026, an award presented by the International Hospital Federation (IHF), and it is the first time a Portuguese hospital has won an international distinction of this level, Executive Digest reports.
The award ceremony took place this Wednesday during the World Hospital Congress in Seoul, South Korea, and Cascais Hospital reached the final stage as one of eight nominees.
First place was awarded to Waldkliniken Eisenberg in Germany, while Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Sweden came in third.
According to the International Hospital Federation, “the IHF Awards continue to honour hospitals and health service providers for their outstanding projects, programmes, and services worldwide.”
Clinical excellence
The evaluation focused on five dimensions: clinical quality and patient safety, patient experience, operational and cost efficiency, staff well-being, and equity in access to healthcare.
Cascais Hospital was recognised in areas such as innovation, clinical excellence, technological maturity, environmental sustainability, and the satisfaction of users and professionals.
According to the institution, its focus in these areas, combined with efficient resource management, is what places the hospital and the Portuguese National Health Service (SNS) among the best in the world.
The award also recognises the work of the Ribera group and Vivalto Santé, which have “promoted a culture of excellence, innovation, continuous improvement and enhancement of the user experience.”
José Bento e Silva, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Cascais Hospital, highlighted the institution’s focus on ethics, technology and innovation.
“It is an honour to receive this award. It is recognition of the work of the professionals at Cascais Hospital and the experience of the Ribera and Vivalto Santé group. We are focused on creating better living conditions for patients, based on ethics, technology and innovation. This award demonstrates that it is possible to provide patient-centred healthcare with humanisation, clinical excellence and cross-functional teams. I want to share it with everyone who made it possible.”
Recognition for Portuguese healthcare
This acknowledgement is particularly relevant for Portugal, as it regards a unit of the National Health Service (SNS) managed under a public-private partnership (PPP).
According to Cascais Hospital, it shows the capacity of an institution in this management model to compete at the highest international level.