Hospital use by the elderly in Poland and the United States.

Hospital use by elderly patients in Poland and the United States was compared using data from the 1980 General Hospital Morbidity Study (Poland) and the National Hospital Discharge Survey (US). Discharge and days-of-care rates were higher in the US but average lengths of stay were longer in Poland. All three measures increased with advancing age in the US but remained relatively constant or decreased with age in Poland. Although the most frequent causes of hospitalization were similar in the two countries, the characteristic use patterns across age were evident for most frequently occurring disease conditions. The greater use of hospitals in the US is not associated with marked differences between the two countries in health status of the elderly.