3 Top-Tier Hospitals in Portsmouth, NH and the Seacoast Region
For Seacoast residents, top- tier medical care can be found in their backyards.
A sophisticated local network has brought the frontiers of medicine close to home, transforming the region through robotic surgery, specialized trauma centers and landmark affiliations with world-renowned Boston health systems.
This standard of excellence is bolstered by essential community providers like Greater Seacoast Community Health, Lamprey Health Care and the Lovering Health Center, ensuring accessible care for all.
As Darin Roark, president and COO of the 120-year-old Wentworth-Douglass Hospital, explains:
“World-class health care really completes a community, because health is the single most important thing that we have. Good health enhances the vitality of how we are able to participate and be a part of that community. So, having world-class health care that supports your ability to thrive and enjoy your life is essential to the success of any community.”
If you are evaluating options for hospitals in Portsmouth, NH, and the surrounding areas, here is an in-depth guide to the premier medical centers anchoring the Seacoast.
Wentworth-Douglass Hospital: Advanced Robotics and Boston Affiliations
Based in Dover, New Hampshire, Wentworth-Douglass Hospital is a 178-bed tertiary-care facility with the largest maternal women’s care network on the Seacoast, delivering more than 1,800 babies each year. The hospital also offers a large primary-care physician network with more than 40 outpatient sites, including at Pease Tradeport in Portsmouth.
Wentworth-Douglass has an advanced cardiac-care program, an oncology service line and one of the largest bariatric surgery programs in New England. To ensure the highest precision, the hospital performs many of these procedures using the da Vinci dV5, the latest in robotic surgical technology.
The hospital also recently added an advanced interventional radiology suite equipped with CT technology. As a result, advanced biopsies can isolate any type of tumor, which can then be examined for future study and used to plan the patient’s cancer treatment.
Wentworth-Douglass Hospital has the latest PET/CT technology, incorporating cardiac software that enables physicians to map heart data to identify potential deficiencies.
All these services are offered as part of the hospital’s partnership with Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’s Hospital – pillars of Boston’s world-renowned medical hub. This collaboration ensures that Portsmouth-area residents have local access to the same elite specialists and lifesaving innovations found in Boston, allowing patients to receive world-class care right here at home.
Wentworth-Douglass Hospital Overview:
Recent state-of-the-art technological upgrades at the hospital include:
- Interventional Radiology Suite: Equipped with advanced CT technology to isolate tumors via precise biopsies, allowing specialists to plan highly targeted cancer treatments.
- PET/CT Technology: Incorporates specialized cardiac software that enables physicians to map data within the heart to quickly identify potential deficiencies.
Portsmouth Regional Hospital: The Seacoast’s Premier Trauma and Stroke Center
Portsmouth Regional Hospital is a 240-bed, acute-care facility that serves as an important anchor for healthcare in Portsmouth, NH. Notably, it stands as the Seacoast’s only American College of Surgeons-verified Level II trauma center. It is also home to the state’s very first Comprehensive Stroke Center and maintains an extensive heart and vascular program.
As a teaching hospital, Portsmouth Regional has residents working in internal medicine, family medicine and psychiatry. The hospital’s key service lines include emergency medicine, cardiology including open-heart surgery, behavioral health, labor and delivery, neurosciences and neurosurgery, oncology, and outpatient physical therapy and wellness.
In recent years, the hospital has introduced robotic tools for surgery and other procedures, including one that is used to help detect lung cancer. Portsmouth Regional launched a radiation oncology service line in 2024 and has opened a new hybrid cardiovascular surgery operating suite, a new ICU and freestanding emergency rooms in nearby Dover and Seabrook.
“As our region has grown, we’ve grown with it – expanding from a community hospital to a tertiary care center to a regional center for more complex care,” says Ellen Miller, market director, communications and community engagement. “Our focus is simple: deliver advanced care close to home, so patients can stay near the people and support systems that matter most.”
Portsmouth Regional Hospital Overview
The hospital’s key specialized service lines include:
- Emergency Medicine and Neurosciences
- Cardiology including open-heart surgery
- Neurosurgery
- Labor and Delivery
- Outpatient Physical Therapy and Behavioral Health Wellness
Exeter Hospital: Magnet-Designated Excellence and Community Care
What originally began in 1897 as a small, 10-patient cottage hospital in the nearby town of Exeter has grown into a premier 100-bed, acute-care facility. Today, Exeter Hospital provides comprehensive services in cancer care, orthopedics, cardiology, maternal and reproductive care, breast health, digestive health and emergency care.
Since 2013, Exeter has been designated as a Magnet hospital by the American Nurses Credentialing Center in recognition of high-quality patient care and nursing excellence. This recognition places Exeter in the top 10% of hospitals in the country.
Exeter Hospital is affiliated with Core Physicians, a multispecialty group practice with more than 160 providers in multiple locations, caring for nearly 80,000 patients annually.
In 2023, Exeter Hospital became part of the Beth Israel Lahey Health (BILH) system, based in Cambridge. BILH combines academic medical centers and teaching hospitals with community and specialty hospitals to increase access to health care and advance the medical field through research. BILH has made a $375 million, 10-year investment to expand services throughout southern New Hampshire.
Exeter Hospital Overview
Exeter Hospital is highly decorated for its nursing standards. Key achievements and partnerships include:
- Magnet Designation: Held since 2013 by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) in recognition of high-quality patient care and nursing excellence, placing Exeter in the top 10% of hospitals nationwide.
- Core Physicians Network: An affiliation with a prominent multispecialty group practice featuring more than 160 providers across multiple Seacoast locations, caring for nearly 80,000 patients annually.
- Beth Israel Lahey Health (BILH) System: Exeter formally joined this Cambridge-based healthcare network. BILH has committed a massive $375 million, 10-year investment to expand medical services and clinical research throughout southern New Hampshire.
Get to Know Greater Portsmouth, New Hampshire
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