1995 summary: National Hospital Discharge Survey

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Epidemiology
• Public Health Statistics

Background:

• National estimates of non-Federal short-stay hospital use are crucial for understanding healthcare delivery in the United States.
• Data from previous years of the National Hospital Discharge Survey provide a historical context for 1995 trends.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present national estimates of non-Federal short-stay hospital utilization in the United States for the year 1995.
• To detail discharge numbers and rates by age, sex, and geographic region.
• To report average lengths of stay for overall discharges and specific diagnostic categories.

Main Methods:

• Utilized medical abstract data from the National Hospital Discharge Survey (NHDS) conducted in 1995.
• Employed the International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) for coding diagnoses and procedures.
• The NHDS has been an annual survey conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics since 1965.

Main Results:

• Provided national estimates for discharges, diagnoses, and procedures in short-stay hospitals.
• Detailed discharge statistics stratified by patient age and sex.
• Presented discharge data by hospital geographic region and average length of stay for various diagnostic groups.

Conclusions:

• The 1995 NHDS data offers a comprehensive snapshot of hospital utilization patterns.
• Findings can inform healthcare policy, resource allocation, and public health initiatives.
• Continued annual data collection is vital for monitoring changes in hospital care.