Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovak Republic, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States,
Total hospital beds

Total hospital beds are all hospital beds which are regularly maintained and staffed and immediately available for the care of admitted patients.

Inclusion:
- Beds in all hospitals, including general hospitals (HP.1.1), mental health and substance abuse hospitals (HP.1.2), and other specialty hospitals (HP.1.3)
- Occupied and unoccupied beds

Exclusion:
- Surgical tables, recovery trolleys, emergency stretchers, beds for same-day care, cots for healthy infants
- Beds in wards which were closed for any reason
- Provisional and temporary beds
- Beds in nursing and residential care facilities (HP.2).

Sources and Methods

Australia

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2008. Australian hospital statistics 2006-07. AIHW Cat. No. HSE 55. Canberra: AIHW (and previous issues). Also at www.aihw.gov.au.
Australian Bureau of Statistics. Private hospitals, Australia. Cat. No. 4390.0. Canberra: ABS.
* Years reported are financial years 1 July to 31 June (e.g. 2006–07 is reported as 2006).
* Data up to 1984 are for approved beds. Data from 1985 are for available beds.
* For public and private hospitals, the number of beds includes beds which are immediately available to be used by admitted patients or residents if required. Surgical tables, recovery trolleys, delivery beds, cots for births without complications, emergency stretchers/beds not normally authorised or funded and beds designated for same-day non-in-patient care are excluded.

Austria

Federal Ministry of Health, Family and Youth (Bundesministerium für Gesundheit, Familie und Jugend) : Austrian Hospital Statistics (Krankenanstaltenstatistik), as of 31 December.
* Beds for same-day care are included.

Belgium

Ministry of Public Health, Safety and the Food Chain and Environment, "Annuaire Statistique des Hôpitaux". Data has been extracted from the WHO Health for all databases.
* The data refers to the number of available beds at the end of the year.
* Included in the calculation are all acute care hospital beds, geriatric hospitals, specialised hospitals, psychiatric hospitals, psychiatric care centres and protected lodging initiatives.
* From 2006 Psychiatric care centres & protected lodging initiatives are taken out. This explains the fall in psychiatric care beds in 2006.

Canada

Statistics Canada, Annual Return of Hospitals Database, 1976-1993/94.
Canadian Institute for Health Information, Canadian MIS Database, 1995/96-2006/07.
The Annual Return of Hospitals Database was transferred from Statistics Canada to the Canadian Institute for Health Information in 1995/96 and was renamed the Canadian MIS Database.
* All beds and cribs in all types of hospitals (including general, specialty, psychiatric, rehabilitation and long-term care hospitals).
* Break in the series: Beds staffed and in operation until 1993. No data is available for 1994. Starting in 1995, some provinces report beds staffed and in operation while other provinces report beds approved by the provincial health authorities.

Czech Republic

Institute of Health Information and Statistics of the Czech Republic. National Health Information System (survey on bed resources of health establishments and its exploitation).
* Number of available beds in General hospitals and Specialised therapeutic institutes (excluding Balneologic institutes, Convalescent homes for children, Institutes for long-term patients and Hospices) as of end of year.
* Until 1999, data cover only establishments of the Health Sector. From 2000, data cover all sectors.

Denmark

National Board of Health
* Data is taken from http://www.sst.dk/publ/tidsskrifter/nyetal/pdf/2006/16_06.pdf.
* Beds in private hospitals are not included.

Finland

National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL), Care Register for Institutional Health Care.
* The number of hospital beds includes data on all hospitals (specialised medical care and primary health care). The number of hospital beds is calculated on the basis of the number of care days during the year. Included are both publicly and privately financed units, with the private units accounting for a very small proportion.
- The total amount of hospital beds: the number of care days during the year is divided by 365/366
- Long-term care beds in hospitals: the care days falling within the calendar year in periods of care with more than 90 days (alternatively: administrative decision on long-term made) are divided by 365/366.
- Acute: the number of beds in acute medical care is calculated by subtracting the number of long-term care beds from the total number of beds.

France

Ministère de la Santé, de la Jeunesse et des Sports - Direction de la Recherche, des Etudes, de l’Evaluation et des Statistiques (DREES). Statistique Annuelle des Etablissements de santé publics et privés (SAE). See http://www.sae-diffusion.sante.gouv.fr/Collecte_2007/.
* The number of beds installed as of 31 December of each year corresponds to the number of beds available to patients and beds temporarily unavailable due to work, including the number of cribs/incubators. Additional beds occupied in cases of emergency are not included.

Germany

Federal Statistical Office, Hospital statistics - basic data, Fachserie 12, Reihe 6.1.1, 6.1.2.
http://www.destatis.de or http://www.gbe-bund.de.
* Total hospital beds comprise beds in all types of hospitals (HP1.1, 1.2 and 1.3) and all sectors (public, not-for-profit and private).
* Included are beds in general hospitals, mental health hospitals and prevention and rehabilitation homes.
* Beds in long-term-nursing care facilities are excluded. Cots for healthy infants, recovery trolleys, emergency stretchers and beds for palliative care are also not included.

Greece

General Secretariat of the National Statistical Service of Greece.

Hungary

Gyogyinfok (Health Care Information Center of Ministry of Health, Social and Family Affairs). www.gyogyinfok.hu.
* Total hospital beds: Available hospitals beds on December 31.

Iceland

* Data not available.

Ireland

Department of Health and Children.
* Figure is the aggregate of acute care beds, psychiatric care beds, long term care beds and other hospital beds. See each individual indicator for detailed metadata and source information.
* Beds in private acute hospitals are not included.

Italy

* Source: Ministry of Health - Health Information System.
http://www.ministerosalute.it/servizio/sezSis.jsp?label=ssn.
* Coverage: All public, not for-profit and private hospitals are registered.
* Since 2000, data refers to all hospitals, public and private, including private hospitals not accredited by National Health Service and except military hospitals. Data is given as annual average of beds in use during the year. Before 2000, data refers to all hospitals, public and private, excluding private hospitals not accredited by National Health Service and except military hospitals.

Japan

Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, “Survey of Medical Institutions”, “Hospital Reports”.
* Definition same as OECD definition.

Korea

Ministry of Health and Welfare, Yearbook of Health and Welfare Statistics.
* As of December 31.
* Excludes day care beds, emergency beds, surgical tables, recovery trolleys, delivery beds and cots for normal neonates.

Luxembourg

National Health Insurance (CNS) - data included in the budget.
* The series has been rectified after the replacement of the main data source (budgeted beds have been collected by CNS, i.e. beds actually paid).
* A series complying with the OECD’s request, which includes the total number of beds in general hospitals, psychiatric hospitals and for drug addicts in specialised hospitals (HP. 1.1 HP. 1.2 et HP. 1.3 of the ICHA-HP terminology) is only available from 2004.
* It is currently difficult to distinguish the in-patient beds from beds for same-day care, models for differentiating them are currently being studied. Their application should clarify the situation.

Mexico

Ministry of Health. Bulletin of Health Information and Statistics. National Health System, Vol. 1.
* Information is reported from 1990 onwards, including public and private sectors.
* For 1991, 1997 and 2000, the data of private providers was estimated using a linear interpolation method.
* Total beds includes in-patient, out-patient and psychiatric beds.

Netherlands

From 2002 onwards: Prismant survey on hospitals.
* Figures include cots for healthy infants and beds for same-day care.
Until 2001: Statistics Netherlands: Intramurale gezondheidszorg, 1972-1996; Vademecum gezondheidsstatistiek 1989-2003.
See at www.cbs.nl/StatLine/Mens en Maatschappij/Gezondheid en Welzijn/Zorgaanbod/ziekenhuizen; idem/geestelijke gezondheidszorg.
* Beds in general, university and specialized hospitals, as well as in mental hospitals; excluding cots for health infants, but including beds for same-day care. Not included are beds in a few hospices for terminal care and in nursing homes.

New Zealand

* Data not available.

Norway

* The source is the annual questionnaire from Statistics Norway on Norwegian hospitals.

Poland

Ministry of Health, Ministry of National Defense, Ministry of the Interior and Administration and the CSO.
* From 2003, the total number of hospital beds comprise beds in all public and private hospitals, (i.e. general, psychiatric, sanatorium hospitals and specialised hospitals). Beds in palliative wards, rehabilitation sanatoria and sanatoria are also included. Beds in long-term nursing care facilities (nursing homes) are excluded.

Portugal

Instituto Nacional de Estatística (INE); Estatísticas da Saúde (published annually).
* A specific questionnaire is addressed to all kinds of institutions with in-patient care.

Slovak Republic

National Health Information Center (NHIC).
* Number of total hospital beds = ( number of acute care beds) + ( number of psychiatric beds ) + ( number of LTC beds in hospitals) + (number of other hospital beds).

Spain

Before 1996:
* Data from Statistics on Health Establishments Providing In-patient Care (several issues) by the Ministry of Health and Consumer Affairs and the National Statistical Institute. http://www.ine.es/.
* Figures include registered beds which are immediately or not immediately available to be used by an admitted patient.
Since 1996:
* Statistics on Health Establishments Providing In-patient Care, only provided by Ministry of Health and Consumer Affairs. http://www.msc.es/estadEstudios/estadisticas/estHospiInternado/inforAnual/home.htm.

Sweden

* Data not available.

Switzerland

Office Fédéral de la Statistique, Statistique des établissements de santé, 1997 and further years.
* Break in time series in 1997 due to the implementation of a new system of hospital statistics.

Turkey

General Directorate of Curative Services of the Ministry of Health.
* Total number of beds (MoH, University, Private Sector, Others (MoD and minorities) included).

United Kingdom

* Calculated by The Information Centre for Health and Social Care (http://www.ic.nhs.uk) for UK using data from:
England - NHS beds Department of Health (DH) (http://www.performance.doh.gov.uk/hospitalactivity/data_requests/beds_open_overnight.htm);
Northern Ireland - the Department for Health, Social Services and Public Safety (http://www.dhsspsni.gov.uk/index/stats_research/stats-pubs/stats-hospital_community_statistics.htmstats-hospital_community_statistics#hospital);
Scotland - Information Services Division NHS Scotland (http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/information-and-statistics.jsp?pContentID=3426&p_applic=CCC&p_service=Content.show&);
Wales - Health Service for Wales (HSW) (http://www.statswales.wales.gov.uk/index.htm).
* Data covers non-private beds only.
* From 2000 “acute care” beds in England includes "long-term care" and "other" beds.
* Data is for financial years (1-April to 31-March). Data for e.g. financial year 2005/06 are presented as 2005.

United States

American Hospital Association (AHA), Hospital Statistics (several issues). Health Forum LLC, an affiliate of the American Hospital Association.
Coverage: AHA-registered and non-registered hospitals in the United States. U.S. hospitals located outside the United States are excluded.
Periodicity: Data collected annually.
Deviation from the definition: Data matches OECD definition:
* Includes all the AHA registered hospital beds for all types of hospitals.
* Estimates are for all AHA registered hospitals.
* AHA-registered hospitals include facilities such as short-term general, psychiatric hospitals, wards, rehabilitation institutes, maternity homes, tuberculosis hospitals, leprosariums, and alcoholic treatment institutions.
* Estimates exclude U.S. associated areas such as Puerto Rico and AHA non-registered hospitals.
Deviation from the calculation method: Calculation methods match OECD definition.
Break in time series: No breaks in time series.

                                                                                                                                   
Source OECD HEALTH DATA 2009, November 09Last update: 06/16/2009