MGH Guides: Health Data Sources: Health Data Sources

What is Health Data?

Health Data is any data related to health conditions, reproductive outcomes, causes of death, and quality of life. There are many, many sources of health data on the web. Here we have collected reliable sources of health data that you can use for research and/or practice. Do you know a source of health data not included on this page? Send us a suggestion.

Looking for datasets? Fortunately, there are a variety of credible data sources on the open web, as well as tools for mapping such data. Take a look at these resources and tools and Ask a Librarian if you have additional questions.

Health Statistics - National

HealthData.gov
A federal database of health data sets.
America's Health Rankings
An annual state-by-state report on health
Dartmouth Atlas
Reports and interactive atlases based on U.S healthcare services and the geographic distribution of healthcare facilities and providers
Health, United States
Annual U.S health statistics with infographics, figures, and tables illustrating trends and health status.
Health Resources and Services Administration
HRSA contains healthcare data based on geography. Specific data sets, maps and tables can be produced of the resources and statistics.
National Center for Health Statistics Data Briefs
Data briefs on a wide variety of health and health care delivery topics.
National Health Care Surveys
Reports from the National Health Care Survey with fourteen different healthcare settings and provider-based surveys
National Health Statistics Reports
"These reports provide annual data summaries, present analyses of health topics, or present new information on methods or measurement issues"
National Profile of Local Health Departments
The latest study presents the newest data on local health department funding, workforce, programs, and partnerships.
Research, Statistics, Data & Systems
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services contain statistics on health expenditures and the insurance programs
Rural Health Information
The rural health information hub contains date on healthcare, health education, health facilities, and the health workforce in rural areas of the U.S.

Health Statistics - State or County Level

If you need more local level data, try searching google or another search engine for the website of a city or state's public health department.

County Health Rankings
U.S county level health reports and statistics produced by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute
Health Grades
Healthgrades.com contains ratings on healthcare facilities and providers from patient questionnaires and other criteria.
State Health Facts
The Henry J Kaiser Family Foundation provides data on hospitals, nursing facilities, physicians, nurses, access to care, rural health clinics, and other similar types of data.
Boston Public health Commission: Health Data
You can read the data available in the Health of Boston reports, as well as request data that does not appear in the reports.

Health Facilities

American Hospital Association
The AHA Guide is an annual directory of hospitals in the U.S. Data includes demographics, operations, expenses, utilization, and other relevant information.
American Hospital Directory
The American Hospital Directory provides information from different hospitals, including utilization, medical services, and hospital Medicare cost reports.
Behavioral Health, United States
Provides an update on a series of topics that focus on substance use and mental health (collectively referred to as behavioral health) in the United States.
Children's Hospital Directory
Information on hospitals included in Children's Hospital Association.
CMS Statistical Supplement
The Statistical Supplement gives reports on short-stay hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, hospices, and time trends.
Federation of American Hospitals
An annual directory with information and data on investor- owned facilities.
Medicare.gov Hospital Compare
Medicare- certified hospitals are compared on their quality and services.
Medpac Data Book
The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission's data book provides information on the Medicare program such as healthcare facilities that use Medicare, Medicare spending, and Medicare beneficiaries.
National Mental Health Services Survey
Source of national- and state-level data on the mental health services delivery system reported by both publicly and privately operated specialty mental health treatment facilities.
Quality Check
Joint Commission-accredited health care facilities in the U.S are compared. Provides information on the accreditation, certification reports, quality, and services.
U.S News and World Report Best Hospitals
The report provides annual rankings of hospitals including best children's hospital, best hospital by specialty, and region. Hospital rankings are based on hospital data and physician surveys.

Health Personnel

General

The U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics
The U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics provides data on the health workforce in different types of healthcare facilities.
National Center for Health Workforce Analysis
The National Center for Health Workforce Analysis provides information on the different healthcare occupations and the workforce projections.
Compendium of Federal Data Sources to Support Health Workforce Analysis
The Compendium (scroll to bottom of page) contains sources, surveys, and statistics on the health workforce. Other reports broken out by health worker disciplines.
Projecting the Supply and Demand for Primary Care Providers
The Health Resources and Services Administration provides information on the projecting supply and demand of primary care providers.
Research Findings and Analysis
Reports on a variety of topics including general workforce analysis, diversity of the health workforce, and the U.S Health Workforce Chartbook
U.S. Health Workforce State Profiles
The U.S. Health Workforce: State Profiles contains data on health occupations by state.
UCSF Health Workforce Research Center on Long-Term Care
The USCF research report provides data on LPNs such as projected demand, employment patterns, demographics, and educational attainment.
Explore Health Careers
Contains info on average salary and salary range, length of study, financing of study, and career outlook.
National Center for Education Statistics
The Digest of Education Statistics includes data on the degrees conferred by schools and universities.

Nurses

National Nursing Workforce Study
The National Council of State Boards of Nursing provides information based on surveys on the nursing workforce.
Profile of Nursing Licensure in the U.S.
The National Nursing Database contains information on P/LVN nursing licensure in the U.S.
National Council of State Boards of Nursing
Provides a statistical report on numbers of newly-licensed RNs and LPNs/VNs and active licenses by state, and NCLEX-RN and NCLEX-PN examination statistics.
National Council of State Boards of Nursing
The NCSBN provides an annual statistical report that gives a summary on the numbers and percentage of candidates taking and passing the NCLEX-RN and the NCLEX-PN.
National League for Nursing
Nursing Education Statistics provides data on the diploma, degree, baccalaureate, and masters program. It contains information on admission, enrollments, applications, graduations, demographics, nursing schools, and nurse educators.

Physician Assistants

Physician Assistants
Includes data about average pay, number of jobs, and job outlook
National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants
The NCCPA provides a statistical report on physician assistants such as demographics, number of PAs by state, practice areas, and income.
Physician Assistant Education Association
The PAEA provides an annual report on applicants, enrollment, curriculum, and financial data on physician assistant educational programs.

Communication Sciences

Speech-Language Pathologists
Includes data about average pay, number of jobs, and job outlook
The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association provides an annual survey report that gives statistics on undergraduate and graduate enrollment in communication sciences and disorders programs, degrees granted, research doctoral programs, faculty data, grants and contracts, trends.
ASHA Membership and Affiliation Profile
Data about ASHA members, including state-by-state.

Physical Therapists

Physical Therapists
Includes data about average pay, number of jobs, and job outlook
Physical Therapy Workforce Data
Reports on salary, demographics, and more.
Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE)
The Aggregate Program Data provides information on physical therapy education programs, admission, enrollment, faculty, and faculty salaries.

Occupational Therapists

Occupational Therapists
Includes data about average pay, number of jobs, and job outlook
Job Prospects in Occupational Therapy

Genetic Counselors

Genetic Counselors
Includes data about average pay, number of jobs, and job outlook
Genetic Counselor Workforce Initiatives
Summary data about workforce and the growth efforts

Physicians

AAMC Workforce Studies
Reports on physician workforce in the U.S.
Association of American Medical Colleges Data Book
The AAMC Data Book provides different resources that gives data on U.S medical schools, teaching hospitals, students, faculty, graduates, healthcare financing and research expenditures, and physicians.

Pharmacists

Profile of Pharmacy Student, from American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP)
The AACP provides annual report on the profile of pharmacy students which includes applicants, enrollments, and degrees conferred.
2014 National Pharmacist Workforce Study
The National Pharmacist Workforce Study contains reports, demographics, and charts on the pharmacist workforce.
National Community Pharmacists Association
The NCPA Digest provides information on community pharmacies, services, and pharmacists wages.