1. Calculating & Reporting Healthcare Statistics
Second Edition
Chapter 3
Patient Census Data

2. Inpatient Census
Indicates the number of patients present in the healthcare facility at a particular point in time
The inpatient census-taking time is usually at midnight (12 a.m.) but may occur at any time as long as the time is adhered to consistently for the entire facility
Each PCU also reports the number of patients admitted, discharged, and/or transferred in or out that day
Transfer, in a hospital setting, refers to an intra-hospital transfer
Patients who are moved from one PCU to another within the facility
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3. Daily Inpatient Census
Includes the number of inpatients present on the PCU at the census-taking time each day and any inpatients who were both admitted after the previous census-taking time and discharged before the next census-taking time
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4. Inpatient Service Days
A unit of measure denoting the services received by one inpatient in one 24-hour period.
The 24-hour period is the time between the census-taking hours on two successive days
One inpatient service day is counted for each inpatient admission when a patient is admitted and discharged the same day
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5. Inpatient Service Days
One unit of one service day is not usually divided or reported as a fraction of a day
The day of admission is counted as an inpatient service day, but the day of discharge is not
The days a patient does not occupy a bed due to leave of absence are excluded because he or she is not present at the census-taking hour
Adults and children are calculated separately
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6. Inpatient Service Days
Other names
Patient day
Inpatient day
Bed occupancy day
Census day
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7. Total Inpatient Service Days
Sum of all the inpatient service days in the period under consideration
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8. Calculation of Inpatient Service Days
The measurement of services received by all inpatients in one 24-hour period
The time between the census-taking hours on two successive days
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9. Transfers Refer to intra-facility
Transfers in and out of any specific medical care unit may or may not be equal
But they must be equal for the overall hospital capitulation
Every patient transferred into a unit on any given day has to have been transferred out of another unit
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10. Patients Admitted and Discharged on the Same Day
May be referred to as in and out (I&O)
Admission/discharge (A&D)
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11. Recapitulation of Census Data
The process of verifying the data
The total number of patients admitted and born during the month or year is added to the patients-remaining census with which the month or year began
From this sum, the number of discharges (including deaths) during the month or year (including deaths) is subtracted
The resulting data are the number of patients remaining at the end of the month or year
This should equal the actual head count at midnight of the last night of that month or year
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12. Average Daily Census
The average number of inpatients present each day for a given period of time
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13. Average Daily Census Formula
Total inpatient service days for a period (excluding newborns) / Total number of days in the period
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14. Average Daily Newborn Census
Formula
Total newborn inpatient service days for a period / Total number of days in the period
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15. Average Daily Census for a Care Unit
Formula
Total inpatient service days for the unit for the period / Total number of days in the period
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16. Leap years and Non Leap Years
A year in which an extra day is added to the calendar in order to harmonize with the seasons
It takes the Earth days to complete its course around the Sun
A leap year must be added roughly once every four years
In a leap year, the extra day is called a leap day and it is added to the end of February giving the month 29 days
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