ANALYSIS of DEMOGRAPHIC FEATURES AFFECTING the HOSPITAL LENGTH of STAY in TURKEY with COUNT MODELS

Recent developments in science and technology, recovery of environmental conditions, early diagnosis of diseases and the treatment methods being developed increase the average duration of life. As well as the average duration of life, the increase of population makes the health sector important. An individual?s examination, tests and observations, use of drugs, surgical interventions and physiotherapy applications are involved within the scope of health services. While rendering these services, the technological development of medical materials being used, the drugs and the duration of hospitalization increase the costs. The extension of hospitalization causes not only a financial cost, but also a social cost as other patients have an extended use of this service or fail to use the service. The reduction of hospitalization is thought to decrease the cost per patient and increase the capacity for other patients to use the service, which is important in terms of the health sector. The objective of this study is to examine the demographic features affecting the duration of hospitalization, which signifies the number of days starting from being admitted to the hospital in Turkey in 2012 until the discharge, based on the internality problem of independent variables. The study has used the data of 2012 Health Researches Survey that was conducted by TUIK.