This session will provide an overview of the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP), a family of databases and tools maintained by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). The objectives of HCUP are to provide the capacity to do research on use of health care services in the U.S., focusing on conditions, procedures, hospitals, small areas, states, or the nation. HCUP is a partnership among states, industry, and the federal government; currently 22 states contribute data to the project. HCUP includes a wide array of uniformly formatted administrative databases including state inpatient data, a nationwide sample of inpatient data and other specialized inpatient datasets, ambulatory surgery data, and emergency department data. Recent innovations in dissemination make these data even more accessible to researchers than previously. HCUP also includes a number of software and Internet tools for making better use of these databases. For example, HCUPnet is an interactive web-based query tool that provides information on national and state hospital use, charges, and outcomes. HCUP also provides free downloadable software such as performance measures based on hospital data (HCUP Quality Indicators) and clinical groupers (Clinical Classification Software). Users will receive detailed packets of information about HCUP products. Examples of research studies using HCUP data and tools will be used to illustrate applications.
Learning Objectives: The session will provide an overview of the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, setting the stage for the following sessions
Keywords: Data Collection, Research
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), Department of Health and Human Services
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.