# The Impact of Public Health Interventions on the Frequency and Duration of Hospitalisations Among Seniors in Poland—An Analysis Covering the Years 2017–2018

## TL;DR

This study found that more public health interventions in Poland were linked to longer hospital stays for seniors with heart, digestive, and musculoskeletal diseases.

## Contribution

The study provides new evidence on the relationship between public health initiatives and hospitalization duration among seniors in Poland.

## Key findings

- More public health tasks correlated with longer hospital stays for seniors with heart, digestive, and musculoskeletal diseases.
- Programs supporting medical services showed the strongest correlation with increased hospitalization duration.
- The study highlights the need for further research to establish causal relationships and control for confounding factors.

## Abstract

Background/Objectives: Public health programmes for older adults aim to reduce hospital admissions and improve health outcomes. However, the effects of these programmes on the length of hospital stays for seniors remain unclear. This study aimed to examine the link between the number and type of public health initiatives implemented between 2017 and 2018, and the number of hospitalisations, as well as the duration of hospital stays in 2019 and 2020, among seniors with heart, digestive, and musculoskeletal diseases. Methods: A correlation analysis was conducted to explore the relationship between the number of public health programmes and activities, and the number and length of hospitalisations among older adults. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05 and p < 0.01. Results: The analysis revealed positive correlations between the number of completed public health tasks and the length of hospital stay across the three disease groups. For heart disease, hospital stay length was correlated with the total number of programmes (r = 0.501, p < 0.05) and those specifically supporting medical services (r = 0.574, p < 0.05). In cases of digestive diseases, correlations were observed with the overall number of programmes (r = 0.623, p < 0.01), as well as programmes in the “general” category and ones supporting medical services (r = 0.544–0.601, p < 0.05). Regarding musculoskeletal diseases, the strongest correlation occurred with programmes that support medical services (r = 0.700, p < 0.01). Conclusions: Our results indicate that increased public health interventions may be associated with longer hospital stays among seniors, likely reflecting the emergence of more complex health needs and increased diagnostic intensity. At the same time, analysis based on ecological data does not allow for the establishment of causal relationships, emphasizing the need for further, more advanced research that controls for confounding factors.