Establishing Standards for Outpatient and Inpatient Care

Abstract

The development of norms of outpatient and inpatient care in the U.S.S.R. is based on studies of the morbidity of different population groups. Analysis is made of general morbidity data on recorded visits to medical facilities and data on medical examinations. An average of 1247.1 such visits and 195.1 cases of hospitalization (including confinements and abortions) were recorded per 1000 urban population in five cities with a total population of 1.5 million. The total number of visits reflected adequately acute and chronic morbidity with marked clinical manifestations, but did not accurately reflect the extent of mild and early forms of chronic disease. Experienced physicians from research institutions in twelve major specialties examined 54,000 people from different communities. Additional investigations such as x–ray and laboratory tests were performed as necessary. Over 800 unknown incidences of disease or abnormal conditions for each 1000 population were revealed during these examinations. These findings were used for the introduction of corrective factors in the determination of actual need in medical care.