The Dartmouth Atlas of Children’s Health Care in Northern New England

<h2>Overview</h2>
<p>The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice (TDI) has created a publicly available source of data that provides researchers, payers, regulators, and innovators with metrics that quantify temporal and regional patterns of health care spending and utilization in the United States. Using CMS Medicare claims data (mostly for age >64 enrollees), Atlas researchers built cohorts (“denominators”) and numerous measures or events (“numerators”) which were then used to calculate rates either by geography or for patients assigned to specific hospitals. These rates, which are calculated consistently across time and place, provide researchers with opportunities to evaluate spatial and temporal variation/trends. </p>

<p>In contrast to traditional Dartmouth Atlas rates, which rely on Medicare claims data, this entry uses All Payer and Medicaid claims data to provide rates for a variety of measures related to pediatric care in Northern New England (Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont). The rates focus on children less than 18 years of age and cover the period from 2007 to 2010. Rates related to seven different health care domains are provided: the physician workforce, ambulatory care, effective care, hospitalization, common surgical procedures, diagnostic imaging, and outpatient pharmacy prescription fills. Rates are provided at either the hospital service area (HSA) or the pediatric surgical area (PSA) level. Where appropriate, rates have been adjusted for age, sex, and insurance type.<p>

<p>Users downloading data should review the methods sections of the related
publication for context. All reports in the Dartmouth Atlas of Health Care series are available from the National Library of Medicine <a href=" https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK584737/">https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK584737/</a></p>