Trends in US Hospital Provision of Health Promotion Services, 1996-2014

Hospitals have long played important roles in the provision of health promotion services (HPS) in local communities, defined as activities that enable people to increase control over and improve their health, including programs such as disease prevention and wellness. Nearly 2 decades ago, researchers cross-sectionally documented the provision of HPS by hospitals, but little research has been done to update this work or document how HPS have changed over time. This study assessed changes in the provision of HPS among US hospitals between 1996 and 2014. Relationships were assessed using random effects Poisson regression models. The overall number of HPS reported by hospitals was relatively modest (approximately half of all possible services, on average). The number of services increased modestly over time, although the rate of increase became less positive over time. The findings highlight a number of opportunities to improve hospital provision of HPS.