The Shift Toward Outpatient Care in India: Evidence From National Health Surveys, 2014 and 2017-18

This article explores reasons for the shift toward outpatient care in India between 2014 and 2017-18. The study used the most recent unit-level data from health surveys conducted by the National Sample Survey for the years 2017-18 and 2014. It is based on the uniform 15-day recall period for utilization of inpatient and outpatient care. Multivariate decomposition analysis was used to identify the contribution of covariates that explain this shift in utilization from inpatient to outpatient care in India. Decomposition analysis suggests that most of this shift is attributable to the change in the coefficient of explanatory variables (98%). The age and nature of diseases accounted for more than 40% of this shift. The age of the patient and non-communicable diseases are the two most significant drivers of the shift toward outpatient care between 2014 and 2017-18.