Activity in Acute Public Hospitals in Ireland, 2011 Annual Report

November 13, 2012

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Health Research and Information Division, The Economic & Social Research Institute

This report presents information on discharges from 57 Irish acute public hospitals participating in the Hospital In-Patient Enquiry (HIPE) scheme in 2011. Hospitals collect and return administrative, demographic and clinical information for each discharge to the ESRI on a monthly basis. The HIPE system is supported by the HSE which, together with the Department of Health, receive the data electronically on a monthly basis from the ESRI. The hospitals that collect the data have available to them a reporting system which enables immediate and continuous access to the current data for management and other purposes. At the national level, HIPE data can inform policy decisions and developments in areas such as hospital budgeting, service planning, workload measurement, etc. Information on the number of day patient and in-patient discharges, together with their demographic characteristics and geographical distribution are presented. The number and type of diagnoses and procedures reported for discharges, together with the case mix treated, are also profiled. The demographic and morbidity analyses for Maternity discharges are presented separately to enable a more comprehensive overview of trends in this area. MAIN FINDINGS OF THE 2011 REPORT Total Discharges

  • Over 1.47 million discharges were reported by the participating hospitals compared to 1.45 million discharges in 2010 – an increase of 1.6%.
  • Day patients accounted for 60% of total discharges in 2011, an increase of 3% since 2010. This compares with 55% of total discharges in 2007; the average annual increase over the period 2007-2010 was 5%.
  • In 2011 in-patients accounted for 40% of total discharges of which 61% were emergency in-patients, 18% were elective in-patients and 21% were Maternity in-patients. In-patients used just over 3.46 million bed days in 2011, a decrease of 3% from 2010.
  • Almost one-third of total discharges were aged 65 years and older, an increase of 1.5% between 2010 and 2011 and an average annual increase of 5% between 2007 and 2011. While this age group also used the highest proportion of total bed days (40%), there was a decrease of 3% on the 2010 figure.
  • Females accounted for 54% of total discharges.
  • Medical card holders accounted for 53% of total discharges.
  • Public patients accounted for 83% of total discharges (79% of total in-patient bed days), with the remainder accounted for by private patients.
  • Nationally, acute in-patient average length of stay was 4.3 days in 2011. Acute in-patient average length of stay ranged from 4 days in the HSE South area to 4.6 days in the HSE Dublin North East area.
  • Voluntary hospitals recorded an acute in-patient average length of stay of 5.6 days for public discharges and 5.8 days for private discharges. For regional hospitals the acute in-patient average length of stay for both public and private discharges was 4.2 days.
  • Extended stay in-patients, who stayed for more than 30 days, accounted for 3% of in-patient discharges and 29% of in-patient bed days.

Maternity Discharges

  • 71,231 women gave birth in acute public hospitals reporting to HIPE in 2011.
  • Normal (non-instrumental) deliveries accounted for almost 60% of total deliveries, followed by Caesarean section at 27%. Instrumental deliveries accounted for the remainder.
  • Some 25% of women who delivered and who were treated on a public basis had a Caesarean section. Of these Caesarean section deliveries, 46% were elective.
  • Some 36% of women who delivered and who were treated on a private basis had a Caesarean section. Of these Caesarean section deliveries, 62% were elective.

Notes for Editors:

  • Activity in Acute Public Hospitals in Ireland, 2011 Annual Report , by the Health Research and Information Division of the Economic & Social Research Institute, will be published online on the ESRI website at 00:01 a.m. Tuesday 13 November. The embargo is 00:01 a.m. Tuesday 13 November.
  • The Hospital In-Patient Enquiry scheme is a health information system designed to collect clinical and administrative data on discharges from, and deaths in, acute hospitals in Ireland. The ESRI has responsibility for managing, and reporting on, the HIPE scheme on behalf of the Department of Health and the Health Service Executive.
  • The HIPE scheme does not collect information on accident and emergency or outpatient visits.
  • The number of women giving birth does not equate to the number of babies born. For national statistics on perinatal events in Ireland see the National Perinatal Reporting System.
  • Current and previous HIPE Annual Reports.