Length of stay comparison between Welsh NHS and English NHS Hospitals

CHKS has reviewed three years of data to look at average lengths of stay in Wales compared to England. This follows a 2022 report from the Nuffield Trust 'How well is the NHS performing'1 which found that average lengths of stay in Wales were significantly higher than those in England. Working in partnership with the Welsh Government, CHKS has looked to see whether the Nuffield result could be confirmed and to shed further light on the variation. 

Our analysis broadly confirms the finding from the Nuffield Trust that lengths of stay are significantly higher than those in England, though our best estimate of the percentage difference is lower. Nuffield's analysis put the average stay in 2020/21 at 7 days against just 4.3 days in England, suggesting that Welsh patients stay more than half as long again (63% longer) than their English counterparts. Our simple analysis of average length of spell gave a similar result. 

You can read the full detailed report here. CHKS has reviewed three years of data to look at average lengths of stay in Wales compared to England. This follows a 2022 report from the Nuffield Trust 'How well is the NHS performing'1 which found that average lengths of stay in Wales were significantly higher than those in England. Working in partnership with the Welsh Government, CHKS has looked to see whether the Nuffield result could be confirmed and to shed further light on the variation.