Here is updated information on trends in the characteristics and numbers of nursing home residents in the United States.

The Division of Health Care Statistics (DHCS), the National Center for Health Statistics, has announced the internet release of Series 13, No 167 of the National Nursing Home Survey (NNHS) Overview Report for the year 2004.

This report examines data from the 2004 NNHS and highlights key findings related to the quality of care, including advance directives, emergency department care, and medications taken by nursing home residents. The data highlights include the following:

• In 2004, there were 1.7 million nursing home beds in the U.S. compared with 1.9 million beds in 1999.
• The number of nursing home residents decreased from 1.6 million in 1999 to 1.5 million in 2004.
• Mental disorders were the second leading primary diagnosis among residents at time of interview (22%). This represents more than a 20-percent increase over the 1999 estimate, when 18% of nursing home residents had a primary diagnosis for a mental disorder at the time of interview.
• Almost 9 percent of current residents had a fall reported in the 30 days prior to the facility interview.
• About 65 percent of current nursing home residents had at least one type of advance directive.
• In the 90 days prior to the facility interview, almost 11 percent of current nursing home residents had at least one hospitalization or emergency department visit while in the care of the nursing home.

The report is attached here – 2004-national-nursing-home-survey