How Many Hospital Beds Does Israel Have? 16,021 in January 2019
The Knesset Research and Information Centre counted 16,021 general hospitalisation beds on establishment in Israel in January 2019, at 45 institutions.
16,021 general hospitalisation beds stood on establishment in Israel in January 2019, on the count the Knesset Research and Information Centre published on 11 December 2019 from Ministry of Health data. That count covers general hospitalisation across 45 institutions, and it counts beds an institution is established to operate rather than beds occupied on any given day. The same paper puts the ratio at 1.78 general hospitalisation beds per 1,000 people in 2019. Paediatric bed counts are published separately, by the State Comptroller of Israel.
| Figure | What it counts | Who published it | Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| 16,021 | General hospitalisation beds on establishment | Knesset Research and Information Centre | January 2019 |
| 45 | General hospitalisation institutions, 9 of them government hospitals | Knesset Research and Information Centre | 2019 |
| 1.78 | General hospitalisation beds per 1,000 people | Knesset Research and Information Centre | 2019 |
| 107.26% | Mean daily internal medicine occupancy at the 15 institutions covered | Knesset Research and Information Centre | 9 December 2019 |
| 1,068 | Budgeted paediatric beds | State Comptroller of Israel | 2020 |
| 91% | Mean occupancy in paediatric wards | State Comptroller of Israel | Reported in the May 2023 audit |
The Knesset Centre counts 16,021 general hospitalisation beds in January 2019
The Knesset Research and Information Centre counted 45 general hospitalisation institutions in Israel, of which 9 are government hospitals and 2 government-municipal. The bed figure in the paper is the Ministry of Health’s own count of beds on establishment, meaning the beds an institution is authorised and budgeted to operate, and it covers general hospitalisation rather than every inpatient category.
| Item | Count | Period |
|---|---|---|
| General hospitalisation institutions | 45 | 2019 |
| Government hospitals among them | 9 | 2019 |
| Government-municipal hospitals among them | 2 | 2019 |
| General hospitalisation beds on establishment | 16,021 | January 2019 |
Source: Knesset Research and Information Centre, General Hospitalization Beds in Israel, 11 December 2019, on Ministry of Health data.
1.78 general beds per 1,000 people in 2019, against 2.09 in 2005
The Knesset Research and Information Centre reported 1.78 general hospitalisation beds per 1,000 people in 2019, 1.88 in 2011 and 2.09 in 2005, and states that the share has been falling since the late 1970s. The ratio is the Ministry of Health’s own beds-on-establishment count set against population, so it moves with both quantities.
Internal medicine occupancy averaged 107.26% on 9 December 2019
The Knesset Research and Information Centre recorded a mean daily internal medicine occupancy of 107.26% across the 15 general hospitalisation institutions it covered, as at 9 December 2019. The rate is measured against the Ministry of Health’s beds on establishment, in one department, at 15 of the 45 institutions, on a single day. The paper states that annual average occupancy data do not allow one to learn the occupancy rate at any particular point in time, and it puts the bed turnover index at 100.7 hospitalisations per bed in 2017, against 102.2 in 2016.
| Measure | Value | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Mean daily internal medicine occupancy, 15 institutions | 107.26% | 9 December 2019 |
| Institutions with internal medicine occupancy above 100% | 6 of 15, which the paper writes as 40% | 9 December 2019 |
| Highest reported, Hadassah Ein Kerem, Jerusalem | 213.6% | 9 December 2019 |
| Sourasky Medical Center, Tel Aviv | 145.5% | 9 December 2019 |
Source: Knesset Research and Information Centre, General Hospitalization Beds in Israel, 11 December 2019.
Budgeted paediatric beds fell from 1,089 in 2009 to 1,068 in 2020
The State Comptroller of Israel reported that budgeted paediatric beds fell from 1,089 in 2009 to 1,068 in 2020, a fall the audit puts at about 2%, over a period in which the child population grew. These are budgeted beds in paediatric wards, counted by the state auditor on the Ministry of Health’s own establishment data, on a different definition and a different date from the January 2019 general hospitalisation count, so the two figures are not added. The audit sets a 91% mean occupancy in Israeli paediatric wards beside a 76% OECD average for 2019, the OECD figure being a mean across member states on their own reporting.
| Figure | What it counts | Period |
|---|---|---|
| 1,089 | Budgeted paediatric beds | 2009 |
| 1,068 | Budgeted paediatric beds | 2020 |
| 91% | Mean occupancy in paediatric wards | Reported in the May 2023 audit |
| 129,000 | Children admitted to paediatric wards | 2021 |
| 425,000 | Paediatric hospital days, approximately | 2021 |
Source: State Comptroller of Israel, Children’s Hospitalization in Hospitals, May 2023.
No total for psychiatric or chronic care beds appears in these publications
Neither publication used here carries a national inventory of psychiatric or chronic-care beds, and neither publishes a bed total across all inpatient categories. The State Comptroller of Israel published 553 children waiting for inpatient or day psychiatric treatment in April 2022, which is the state auditor’s count of a queue at one date rather than a count of beds.
- The Knesset Research and Information Centre paper is confined to general hospitalisation, itemised as beds in general hospitals and beds in geriatric hospitals.
- The State Comptroller audit publishes budgeted paediatric beds, paediatric ward occupancy, admissions and hospital days.
- The 553 children recorded in April 2022 covers inpatient and day psychiatric treatment together, at that date.
Which figures here may not be added together?
The 16,021 is beds on establishment for general hospitalisation, on the Ministry of Health’s own count relayed by the Knesset Research and Information Centre; the 1,068 is budgeted paediatric beds published by the State Comptroller for 2020. The definitions and the dates differ, and the two are not summed. The Knesset paper prints a total of 16,021 alongside components of 15,871 beds in general hospitals and 151 in geriatric hospitals, which sum to 16,022, so cite the total or the components and not both. The 107.26% is occupancy against beds on establishment, in internal medicine, at 15 institutions on one day. The 91% and the 76% carry different periods, the OECD comparator being 2019.
Questions readers ask
How many hospital beds does Israel have?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre counted 16,021 general hospitalisation beds on establishment in January 2019, on Ministry of Health data. The figure covers general hospitalisation and no other inpatient category.
Does that figure include psychiatric and chronic care beds?
No. The Knesset Research and Information Centre reported general hospitalisation beds, itemised between general and geriatric hospitals, and published no psychiatric or chronic-care inventory in that paper.
How many hospitals are there in Israel?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre counted 45 general hospitalisation institutions in 2019, of which 9 are government hospitals and 2 government-municipal.
How many hospital beds per person does Israel have?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre reported 1.78 general hospitalisation beds per 1,000 people in 2019, against 1.88 in 2011 and 2.09 in 2005.
Are Israeli hospitals full?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre recorded mean daily internal medicine occupancy of 107.26% across 15 institutions on 9 December 2019, with 6 of the 15 above 100% that day.
Which hospital reported the highest occupancy?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre reported Hadassah Ein Kerem in Jerusalem at 213.6% internal medicine occupancy on 9 December 2019, and Sourasky Medical Center in Tel Aviv at 145.5%.
Why does the paper give a single day rather than an annual average?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre states that annual average occupancy data do not allow one to learn the occupancy rate at any particular point in time.
How many paediatric beds does Israel have?
The State Comptroller of Israel reported 1,068 budgeted paediatric beds in 2020, against 1,089 in 2009, in its audit of children’s hospitalisation.
How many children are admitted to hospital in Israel each year?
The State Comptroller of Israel reported 129,000 children admitted to paediatric wards in 2021, accounting for about 425,000 hospital days.
How many children were waiting for psychiatric treatment?
The State Comptroller of Israel recorded 553 children waiting for inpatient or day psychiatric treatment in April 2022.
Does Israel publish waiting times as well as bed counts?
The State Comptroller of Israel reported that appointments booked more than 90 days ahead rose from 221,573 to 290,105 at Clalit and from 360,010 to 513,517 at Maccabi. Those are appointment counts reported per health fund.
Sources
- Knesset Research and Information Centre, 2019. General Hospitalization Beds in Israel. Written by Aharon Blank and Flora Koch Davidovich, 11 December 2019. fs.knesset.gov.il. Official or primary record.
- State Comptroller of Israel, 2023. Children’s Hospitalization in Hospitals. Ministry of Health chapter, annual report, May 2023. library.mevaker.gov.il. Official or primary record.
- State Comptroller of Israel, 2024. Waiting Times for Specialist Medical Services. Chapter 601, annual report 75A part B, November 2024. library.mevaker.gov.il. Official or primary record.
