Edit Organization: National Center for Health Statistics

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{{Short description|American government agency}} {{Infobox government agency |agency_name = National Center for Health Statistics |logo = |logo_width = |preceding1 = |jurisdiction = [[Federal government of the United States]] |formed = 1960 |headquarters = [[Hyattsville, Maryland]], U.S. |coordinates = |employees = 700–750 |budget = |chief1_name = [[Brian C. Moyer]], Ph.D. |chief1_position = Director, National Center for Health Statistics |chief2_name = |chief2_position = |chief3_name = |chief3_position = |child1_agency = |parent_agency = [[United States Department of Health and Human Services]] |website = {{url|https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/}} |footnotes = }} The '''National Center for Health Statistics''' ('''NCHS''') is a U.S. government agency that provides statistical information to guide actions and policies to improve the [[public health]] of the American people. It is a unit of the [[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]] (CDC) and a principal agency of the [[Federal Statistical System of the United States|U.S. Federal Statistical System]]. It is headquartered at University Town Center in [[Hyattsville, Maryland]], just outside [[Washington, D.C.]] == History == The [[Marine Hospital Service]], predecessor of the [[United States Public Health Service|Public Health Service]] (PHS), began collecting data on communicable diseases and performing [[Public health surveillance|surveillance]] of the incidence and distribution of diseases due to an 1878 act of Congress. In 1893, another law provided for weekly collection of data from state and municipal authorities.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK234719/ |title=Toward a National Health Care Survey: A Data System for the 21st Century |date=1992 |publisher=National Research Council |isbn=978-0-309-04692-3 |language=en |chapter=Federal Health Data Sources |doi=10.17226/1941|pmid=25121299 }}</ref> The '''Division of Sanitary Reports and Statistics''' was established in 1899 as part of the initial establishment of internal divisions within the Marine Hospital Service.<ref name=":2" /> Separately, the '''Division of Public Health Methods''' was formed in 1937 within the [[National Institutes of Health|National Institute of Health]].<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IWvdIqMf-gIC&pg=PA66 |title=Annual report of the Surgeon General of the Public Health Service of the United States for the fiscal year 1937 |date=1937 |pages=66 |language=en}}</ref> In 1943, these two divisions were merged, retaining the name Division of Public Health Methods but being transferred into the [[Office of the Surgeon General]].<ref name=":2" /> In 1946, the Division of Public Health Methods absorbed the Vital Statistics Division, which dated from 1903, from the [[United States Census Bureau|Bureau of the Census]] in the [[United States Department of Commerce|Department of Commerce]]. The merged division was renamed the '''National Office of Vital Statistics'''. It was then transferred into the PHS [[Bureau of State Services]] in 1949.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|date=2016-08-15|title=Records of the Public Health Service [PHS], 1912-1968|url=https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/090.html|access-date=2021-08-04|website=National Archives|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Department of Health and Human Services. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. National Center for Health Statistics. Division of Vital Statistics. (10/31/1995 - ) Organization Authority Record |url=https://catalog.archives.gov/id/10475449 |access-date=2022-05-19 |website=U.S. National Archives}}</ref> In 1960, the National Office of Vital Statistics and the National Health Survey merged to form the National Center for Health Statistics.<ref name="about_NCHS" /> The National Health Survey had been created within PHS in 1956 through the National Health Survey Act ({{USPL|84|652}}); it was the successor to a seminal national health survey performed by the [[Works Progress Administration]] during 1935–1936, which had multiple supplemental studies carried out in the intervening decades.<ref name=":1" /> During the [[U.S. Public Health Service reorganizations of 1966–1973|PHS reorganizations of 1966–1973]], the National Center for Health Statistics was part of the Health Services and Mental Health Administration (HSMHA),<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|date=2016-08-15|title=Records of the Health Resources and Services Administration [HRSA]|url=https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/512.html|access-date=2021-08-08|website=National Archives|at=Section 512.2|language=en}}</ref> and afterwards was part of the [[Health Resources and Services Administration|Health Resources Administration]].<ref name=":13">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M-n4arYE5ScC|title=History, mission, and organization of the Public Health Service|date=1976|publisher=U.S. Public Health Service|pages=3–4, 20, 22|language=en|access-date=2021-08-08}}</ref> Since 1987, it has been part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).<ref name="about_NCHS">''[https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/about/50th_anniversary.htm]'' About NCHS: Celebrating 50 Years</ref> == Data collection programs == NCHS collects data with surveys, from other agencies and U.S. states, from administrative sources, and from partnerships with private health partners. NCHS collects data from birth and death records, medical records, interview surveys, and through direct physical examinations and laboratory testing. These diverse sources give perspectives to help understand the U.S. population's health, health outcomes, and influences on health.<ref>''[https://www.mostlymedicaid.com/?p=3077]'' Mostly Medicaid.</ref> There are [https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/about/nchs_50th_brochure.pdf four major data collection programs at NCHS]: ===National Vital Statistics System=== The [[National Vital Statistics System]] (NVSS) collects official [[Vital statistics (government records)|vital statistics]] data based on the collection and registration of birth and death events at the state and local levels. NCHS works in partnership with the vital registration systems in each [[jurisdiction]] to produce critical information on such topics as teenage births and birth rates, prenatal care and birth weight, [[risk factor]]s for adverse pregnancy outcomes, infant mortality rates, leading [[Cause of death|causes of death]], and [[life expectancy]].{{cn|date=March 2024}} ===National Health Interview Survey=== The [[National Health Interview Survey]] (NHIS) provides information on the health status of the U.S. civilian noninstitutionalized population through confidential [[Interview (research)|interviews]] conducted in households by [[United States Census Bureau|Census Bureau]] interviewers. NHIS is the Nation's largest in-person household health survey, providing data on health status, access to and use of health services, [[health insurance]] coverage, [[immunization]]s, [[risk factor]]s, and health-related [[behavior]]s.{{cn|date=March 2024}} ===National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey=== The [[National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey]] (NHANES) is NCHS's most in-depth and [[Logistics|logistically]] complex survey, operating out of mobile examination centers that travel to randomly selected sites throughout the U.S. to assess the health and nutritional status of Americans. This survey combines personal interviews with standardized [[physical examination]]s, [[diagnostic procedure]]s, and [[laboratory test]]s to obtain information about diagnosed and undiagnosed conditions; growth and development, including [[overweight]] and [[obesity]]; [[Diet (nutrition)|diet]] and [[nutrition]]; [[risk factor]]s; and environmental exposures.{{cn|date=March 2024}} ===National Health Care Surveys=== The [https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/dhcs/index.htm National Health Care Surveys] provide information about the organizations and providers that supply [[health care]], the services they render, and the patients they serve. Provider sites surveyed include physician offices, [[community health center]]s, [[ambulatory surgery center]]s, hospital [[Outpatient clinic (hospital department)|outpatient]] and [[Emergency department|emergency]] departments, [[Inpatient care|inpatient]] hospital units, [[residential care]] facilities, [[nursing home]]s, [[Home care|home health care]] agencies, and [[hospice]] organizations. The National Health Care Surveys are used to study resource use, including [[staffing]]; quality of care, including patient safety; clinical management of specific conditions; [[Health equity|disparities]] in the use and quality of care; and diffusion of health care technologies, including [[drug]]s, [[Surgery|surgical procedures]], and information technologies. ==Other data collection programs== In addition to its major data collection programs, {{abbr|NCHS|National Center for Health Statistics}} conducts [[Targeted surveillance|targeted surveys]] and augments survey data where possible. NCHS conducts the [[National Survey of Family Growth]] to obtain information on factors affecting birth and pregnancy rates, adoptions, and maternal and infant health, and supplements the information obtained on birth certificates collected through the National Vital Statistics System. NCHS's [[State and Local Area Integrated Telephone Survey]] (SLAITS) produces state-level data on such topics as the health of children with special needs, to meet the data needs of its colleagues in {{abbr|HHS|Department of Health and Human Services}}'s Maternal and Child Health Bureau and elsewhere. NCHS's [[National Immunization Survey]] is conducted in collaboration with other {{abbr|CDC|Centers for Disease Control and Prevention}} offices in Atlanta. NCHS's [[National Death Index]] creates a [[Longitudinal study|longitudinal]] component to other routine data systems. NCHS's [[Questionnaire Design Research Laboratory]] develops and tests survey and data collection instruments for use by NCHS and other federal agencies and research organizations.<ref name="about_NCHS"/> ==See also== * [[National Institutes of Health]] ==References== {{Reflist}} ==External links== * {{Official website|https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/}} {{United States Department of Health and Human Services}} {{US statistical agencies}} {{Authority control}} [[Category:Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]] [[Category:Federal Statistical System of the United States]] [[Category:Health surveys]]