Indicator Data Explained
Accrued patient days
The total number of days that admitted patients spent in hospital during the reported time period.
Bed occupancy rate
The bed occupancy rate compares the number of patients (calculated as accrued patient days) treated over a twelve-month period to the total number of beds available for that same period (calculated as the total number of acute hospital beds multiplied by the number of days beds available for that period). Bed occupancy rates are a measure of the intensity of the use of hospital resources by patients.
Elective surgery
"Elective surgery is surgery that, in the opinion of the treating clinician, is necessary but can be delayed for at least 24 hours. Patients requiring elective surgery are placed on a register, or waiting list, so their surgery can be planned. The scheduling of patients on a waiting list is determined according to the patient’s clinical need and the likelihood of their condition deteriorating or becoming an emergency. These patients are assigned one of three nationally standard clinical urgency categories:"
- Category 1 - admission within 30 days desirable for a condition that has the potential to deteriorate quickly to the point that it may become an emergency.
- Category 2 - admission within 90 days desirable for a condition causing some pain, dysfunction or disability but which is not likely to deteriorate quickly or become an emergency.
- Category 3 - Admission at some time in the future acceptable for a condition causing minimal or no pain dysfunction or disability, which is unlikely to deteriorate quickly and which does not have the potential to become an emergency.
(Quarterly Public Hospital Performance Report June Quarter 2010, pp 10)
Patients waiting for an outpatient appointment
"...people waiting for a new case specialist outpatient appointment at Queensland public hospitals." (Quarterly Public Hospitals Performance Report March 2010, pp 20)
Median waiting time from arrival at ED to admission
“The waiting time to admission reflects the time that patients were in the emergency department, from when they arrived to when they were admitted to an inpatient bed. During this time in the emergency department, the patient is receiving treatment and consultative care from a range of clinical staff, and undergoing diagnostic tests such as pathology and radiology”.
(Queensland Health Quarterly Public Hospital Performance Report June Quarter 2010, pp 5).
Off stretcher times
“… the time to transfer the care of a patient from the QAS [Queensland Ambulance Service] stretcher to the hospital emergency department. The performance of hospitals is measured as the percentage of patients off stretcher within 30 minutes of the ambulance’s arrival.” (Quarterly Public Hospitals Performance Report June Quarter 2010, pp 7).
