By Idowu Deborah
The University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, has ranked first among Nigerian health institutions in the 2026 SCImago Institutions Rankings (SIR), placing ahead of five other institutions assessed under the health sector.
The ranking lists UCH ahead of the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR), Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH) and Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospitals Complex (OAUTHC).
Globally, UCH occupies the 7,051st position in the 2026 edition, with an overall percentile of 66. Its profile records a research percentile of 40, while its innovation and societal percentiles stand at 72 each. SCImago also places the institution in the Q1 category for Nigeria.
SCImago Institutions Rankings assesses institutions using indicators grouped into three broad areas: research, innovation and societal impact. Research accounts for 50 per cent of the overall methodology, innovation for 30 per cent and societal impact for 20 per cent. The indicators cover areas including scientific output and excellence, international collaboration, knowledge transfer, patents, technological impact, web visibility, sustainable development goals and policy impact.
UCH also ranked first among the six Nigerian institutions in the overall innovation category. In the separate research ranking, however, the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research placed first, while UCH ranked second.
The hospital recorded first-place positions in several subject areas within the 2026 SCImago rankings. It ranked first among Nigerian health institutions in Critical Care and Intensive Care Medicine, Epidemiology and Psychology, with the relevant rankings listing only UCH among Nigerian institutions in those categories.
Founded in 1952 by the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, and officially opened in 1957, UCH is a tertiary healthcare institution in Ibadan that combines specialist healthcare delivery with medical training and research. Its SCImago profile identifies its sector as Health and lists its mission as including healthcare delivery, health personnel development and research.
The 2026 ranking provides an external measure of UCH’s performance across research, innovation and societal-impact indicators. The result comes amid the hospital’s continuing role in healthcare delivery, medical education and health research in Nigeria.
Source: University College Hospital, Ibadan Facebook page
