User Population/Workload Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

There are a number of possible explanations for this:

1. Misunderstanding
Outpatient visits are reported by the date of service (discharge date is used for inpatient visits), not on the date that visits are submitted. If you sent a file in January that contained 10 visits, do not expect that you will see 10 visits reported under January. Your January file likely contained visits for previous months, perhaps even previous years.  It may also have contained updates to visits previously received/reported and therefore will not contribute additional counts.

2. Data Not Received by the NDW
If the NPIRS reported numbers are low compared to your locally available reports, first make sure NPIRS has received and processed all of the files you have submitted in time to be included in the current report. Refer to the most recent version of the Timeline for Transmittal of Worlkload Data and Production of Userpop Estimates [PDF - 184Kb] ). Also, ensure that there are no gaps in your submissions.  Both of these issues can be checked using the Export Tracking Mart. It is possible that not all of your visits were included in the export to NPIRS. The RPMS export process, for example, skips some records intentionally and others due to errors.  The person who creates and transmits your exports should be checking for (and following-up on) any visits not included due to error. Refer to the RPMS Data Warehouse Export System (BDW) User Manual [PDF-109Kb].

3. Data Not Processed by the NDW
There is a remote possibility that the NDW could have rejected a visit that was sent. The Post Load report, sent by the NDW after a file is processed, has a place to indicate rejects. A description of the Post Load report can be found in the NDW Export Tracking Data Mart User Guide [PDF - 780Kb].

4. Data Not Reportable
If NPIRS has received and processed all of your visits, the reason your counts are low is almost certainly that the visits did not meet the criteria to be “workload-reportable.”  The rules for determining the workload-reportability status of all of the various kinds of visits can be found in the NPIRS Basic Business Rules [PDF - 557Kb].

The NDW provides data quality reports that will point out workload-reportability problems, generally for visits in the current fiscal year. The reports are described in the NDW Data Quality Mart User Guide [PDF - 1.13Mb]. The reports themselves are only available to the Area Statistical Officers. If you believe you have a problem, please have your Area Statistical Officer check these reports and provide you with an extract if appropriate.