How research hospitals are meeting the world's health challenges

"The prevalence of certain topics among the 50 most-cited papers from research hospitals in the Nature Index each year has changed noticeably from 2019 to 2024. As the COVID-19 pandemic waned, artificial intelligence (AI) has again made up a large proportion of such articles."

"Health-care systems have differing priorities. Those in poorer countries focus on cutting infant deaths, which make up a high proportion of overall mortality; those in richer countries focus more on prolonging healthy lifespan, given most deaths come later in life."

The prevalence of certain topics among the 50 most-cited papers from research hospitals in the Nature Index each year changed noticeably from 2019 to 2024. As the COVID-19 pandemic waned, artificial intelligence (AI) again made up a large proportion of such articles. Health-care systems have differing priorities driven by demographic patterns and causes of death. Poorer countries concentrate efforts on cutting infant deaths because those deaths constitute a high proportion of overall mortality. Richer countries emphasize prolonging healthy lifespan because most deaths occur later in life. Wealth and demographic structure therefore shape research focus and health-system priorities.

Read at Nature