Trends in hospitalization rates of the elderly for acute and chronic diseases, Israel, 1954-72.

Hospital discharge rates among the total and the aged Jewish populations in Israel from 1954 to 1972 were studied in relation to the main diagnosis. The disease entities studied included selected acute and chronic diseases, and diseases of old age. The hospital discharge rates for acute diseases did not change throughout the period surveyed, but the rates for chronic diseases and for those disorders that are prevalent in old age did increase gradually from 1954-72, and more markedly among the aged than among the total population. These increasing rates may result from higher expectations of modern medicine, reluctance to care for the elderly within the family, and the vacuum in hospital bed occupancy caused by the decline in infectious diseases. In view of the increasing costs of hospital services, we suggest that at least some of the patients with chronic diseases should receive the care they need at home, in nursing homes, or through other less expensive extended-care facilities.