The average length of stay at hospitals across the U.S. is dropping slightly, while observation days have big declines year over year, according to Kaufman Hall's National Hospital Flash Report.
The report includes data from 1,300 hospitals in August, which are tracked monthly for operational and financial trends. The length of stay dropped one to two percentage points on average for most hospitals, regardless of region and size. There was a wider variation in the observation days as a percentage of patient days, as patients are leaving the hospital quicker this year compared to last year.
"This development indicates less severe patient acuity and efficient care transition pathways," the report authors noted. Here are 22 statistics from the report.
Average length of stay
1. Total: -1%
2. West: 0%
3. Midwest: -1%
4. South: -1%
5. Northeast / Mid-Atlantic: -2%
6. Great Plains: 0%
7. 26-99 beds: -2.5%
8. 100-199 beds: 2.1%
9. 200-299 beds: -1.9%
10. 300-499 beds: -0.2%
11. 500+ beds: -0.6%
Observation patient days as a percentage of patient days
12. Total: -13%
13. West: -2%
14. Midwest: -24%
15. South: -16%
16. Northeast / Mid-Atlantic: -18%
17. Great Plains: 5%
18. 26-99 beds: -20.6%
19. 100-199 beds: -5.2%
20. 200-299 beds: -6.7%
21. 300-499 beds: -12%
22. 500+ beds: -9.4%