Where is the best place to do a medical internship? Hospital rankings revealed

Where do young doctors receive the best training, and in which hospitals is the internship experience less positive? A new survey by the Ministry of Health provides a broad look at the year in which medical school graduates transition from university to field work, and reveals significant gaps in satisfaction between hospitals and departments. Analyzing the data according to the four mandatory rotations also makes it possible to identify which medical centers stand out for the better, and which are left behind.

The survey included 1,831 interns who completed their internship period during 2025. 61% of the respondents were graduates of medical studies abroad and 30.7% were graduates from Israel. It is important to note that they performed the internship in its previous format, before the new reform came into effect. The survey examined the four core rotations: internal medicine, surgery, pediatrics, and emergency medicine (ER) — and checked, among other things, the quality of instruction and mentoring, the treatment of interns as part of the team, the extent of their confidence to apply the knowledge they acquired, rest conditions during shifts, and whether they would recommend the department for an additional rotation. Satisfaction was defined as giving a score of 4 or 5 out of 5.

Internal medicine in first place, surgery at the bottom

Even before comparing between hospitals, the data reveals a large gap between the medical fields themselves. Internal medicine departments received the highest satisfaction rate — 73.3%. They are followed by emergency rooms with 70.6%, pediatric departments with 69.4%, while surgical departments are far behind with only 49.1%. Although surgery did record an improvement compared to 2024, when the satisfaction rate stood at 47%, it continues to be the mandatory rotation that receives the lowest scores from interns. At the same time, regarding questions concerning instruction, accompaniment, and mentoring, there was an increase of about four percentage points in satisfaction in each of the departments, a figure that points to an improvement in some of the central components of young doctors' training.

Ichilov leads among the super-centers

Examining the four mandatory rotations makes it possible to identify clear trends. Among the super-centers, Ichilov stands out for the better: 82% satisfaction was recorded in internal medicine, 54% in surgery, 75% in pediatrics, and 83% in the ER. A simple average of the four figures stands at about 73.5%. Ichilov leads the super-centers in internal medicine, surgery, and the ER. In pediatric departments, Beilinson actually leads the group with 76%, compared to 75% at Ichilov. On the other hand, the gap in the surgical rotation is prominent: Beilinson received only 33% satisfaction in surgery, the lowest figure in this field among the super-centers.

Ziv stands out with particularly high scores

When moving to the small hospitals, a particularly interesting picture is obtained. The Ziv Medical Center stands out with high satisfaction rates in all four mandatory rotations: 86% in internal medicine, 84% in surgery, 90% in pediatrics, and 91% in the ER. In a simple average calculation of the four rotations, it is about 87.8% — a particularly high figure compared to many hospitals in the survey. However, the comparison between a small hospital and a super-center is not complete: the scope of activity, the number of interns, and the characteristics of the hospitals are different. In addition, the ministry warns against drawing far-reaching conclusions regarding Ma'ayanei HaYeshua, Nazareth, and Yoseftal, where the number of interns included in the survey was less than ten.

Meir and HaEmek lead their groups

Among the large hospitals, Meir stands out at the top with 82% satisfaction in the internal medicine rotation, 75% in the ER, 71% in pediatrics, and 60% in surgery. Among the medium-sized hospitals, the HaEmek Medical Center also presents high figures, including 78% satisfaction in the ER and 77% in internal medicine. On the other hand, Barzilai is at the bottom of the medium-sized hospital group in all four mandatory rotations examined: 58% satisfaction in internal medicine, only 39% in surgery, 54% in pediatrics, and 61% in the ER. But the data also clarifies why it is difficult to crown one hospital as the "best." The internship experience varies significantly between departments: a medical center that excels in internal medicine or the emergency room may receive a much lower score in surgery. For doctors at the beginning of their path, it turns out, not only the hospital's name determines, but also the department where they will spend the rotation.

And what do the interns want to do next?

The survey also checked where young doctors want to continue after the internship year. Internal medicine, pediatrics, and family medicine are the three most preferred specialties among the respondents. And what influences the choice? It is not the salary that is in first place. According to the survey, interest and challenge in the profession are the most significant factor in choosing a specialty. They are followed by satisfaction with the rotation the intern went through in the department, and only then the future earning capacity. Also, regarding the place where they would want to specialize, the center of the country continues to be the most sought-after area, followed by the Haifa area — a trend similar to that found in the previous survey.

Graduates from abroad are more satisfied in some departments

Another interesting gap was found between those who studied medicine in Israel and graduates of medical schools abroad. According to the Ministry of Health, the most prominent differences were found in emergency rooms and surgical departments, where graduates from abroad reported significantly higher satisfaction than graduates from Israel. The figure is particularly significant considering that graduates from abroad were the majority of respondents to the survey — 61%.

The survey was conducted before the new reform

The data has another important reservation: they describe the internship year before the reform that came into effect afterwards. As part of the reform, the internship was shortened and, among other things, the processes for evaluating interns were changed. Therefore, the next survey will be particularly significant and will allow examining whether the changes actually affected the experience of young doctors. The head of the Medical Division at the Ministry of Health, Dr. Hagar Mizrahi, stated that "the internship is a significant stage in shaping the future generation of medicine in Israel," and added that the increase in satisfaction in all core departments is a positive trend, alongside areas where work is still required.

Ultimately, the data reveals not only where interns are more satisfied, but also how much their first year as doctors can be different from department to department and from hospital to hospital. For a healthcare system that deals with the need to recruit and retain the next generation of doctors, it is about much more than satisfaction scores; the experience in the department today may influence the place and profession where the doctors will choose to work tomorrow.