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26 Feb 2009 : Column 1016W—continued
| Number of alcohol-related admissions of patients aged 65 or over, by Government Office r egion of residence | |||||
| Government Office Region | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 |
| Notes: Includes activity in English national health service hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector. Alcohol-related admissions The number of alcohol-related admissions is based on the methodology developed by the North West Public Health Observatory (NWPHO). Following international best practice, the NWPHO methodology includes a wide range of diseases and injuries in which alcohol plays a part and estimates the proportion of cases that are attributable to the consumption of alcohol. Details of the conditions and associated proportions can be found in the report Jones et al. (2008) Alcohol-attributable fractions for England: Alcohol-attributable mortality and hospital admissions. Number of episodes in which the patient had an alcohol-related primary or secondary diagnosis These figures represent the number of episodes where an alcohol-related diagnosis was recorded in any of the 14 (seven prior to 2002-03) primary and secondary diagnosis fields in a Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) record. Each episode is only counted once in each count, even if an alcohol-related diagnosis is recorded in more than one diagnosis field of the record. Finished admission episodes A finished admission episode is the first period of inpatient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. Finished admission episodes are counted against the year in which the admission episode finishes. Please note that admissions do not represent the number of inpatients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year. Primary diagnosis The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 14 (seven prior to 2002-03) diagnosis fields in the Hospital HES data set and provides the main reason why the patient was in hospital. Secondary diagnoses As well as the primary diagnosis, there are up to 13 (six prior to 2002-03) secondary diagnosis fields in HES that show other diagnoses relevant to the episode of care. Data Quality HES are compiled from data sent by more than 300 NHS trusts and primary care trusts (PCTs) in England. Data is also received from a number of independent sector organisations for activity commissioned by the English NHS. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data via HES processes. While this brings about improvement over time, some shortcomings remain. Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), The NHS Information Centre for health and social care | |||||
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