Asan Medical Center has been ranked the top medical institution in South Korea and 64th globally in the Nature Index 2026 Research Leaders: Leading Healthcare Institutions, underscoring its growing international research competitiveness.
The hospital announced Sunday that it achieved a Share score of 33.4, the highest among Korean healthcare institutions. Its global ranking rose to 64th this year from 77th in 2025.
The Nature Index measures institutional research performance based on publications in 178 leading scientific journals, including the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), The Lancet, JAMA and Nature. Rather than counting the number of papers alone, the rankings are based on each institution’s Share score, which reflects its actual contribution to published research by accounting for the number of authors and their institutional affiliations.
Asan Medical Center’s Share score increased from 25.9 last year to 33.4, a gain of approximately 29%, while its researchers published 119 papers included in the index.
Beginning this year, the Nature Index introduced a revised evaluation methodology that classifies research by individual papers rather than by journals and expands coverage beyond natural and health sciences to include applied sciences and social sciences.
The updated methodology is designed to better capture interdisciplinary research, including advances in medical artificial intelligence and digital healthcare.
Under the revised system, Asan Medical Center recorded the highest Share score among Korean medical institutions.
The hospital said the substantial increase in its Share score demonstrates not only a higher volume of publications but also greater research influence in the world’s most prestigious scientific journals.
Earlier this year, Asan Medical Center also ranked first in five specialties — cardiology, cardiac surgery, neurology, endocrinology and orthopedics — in Newsweek’s World’s Best Hospitals Asia-Pacific 2026 rankings.
The hospital topped more specialty categories than any other institution among hospitals evaluated across 11 countries, reinforcing its international reputation in both research and clinical care.
“We will continue strengthening our research support system to foster an environment capable of producing world-class scientific achievements,” said Kim Tae-won, president of the Asan Institute for Life Sciences.
Separately, Asan Medical Center has published 10 papers in the New England Journal of Medicine, the highest total among Korean healthcare institutions.
The journal has an impact factor of 84.5, exceeding those of Nature (56.1) and Science (47.3), and is widely regarded as the world’s leading medical journal.