Objectives: This paper explores the relationship of state hospital and general hospital psychiatric caseloads in a statewide system of care.
Methods: Probabilistic population estimation was applied to general hospital and state hospital data sets.
Results: General hospitals provide inpatient psychiatric services to more people than do state hospitals, and a significant number are served in both sectors. There were notable differences in use patterns related to patient gender and age.
Conclusions: These results demonstrate that probabilistic methodologies can significantly enhance the value of existing databases for epidemiological research.