Average Length of Stay

Indicator Phrasing

average length of stay in the treatment program for recovered children aged 6-59 months

Indicator Phrasing

English: average length of stay in the treatment program for recovered children aged 6-59 months

French: durée moyenne du séjour dans le programme de traitement pour les enfants guéris âgés de 6 à 59 mois

Portuguese: período médio de permanência no programa de tratamento das crianças recuperadas com idades entre 6-59 meses

Czech: průměrná doba trvání léčby u zotavených dětí ve věku 6-59 měsíců

What is its purpose?

The indicator measures the average duration of the children's stay in the treatment program before they were discharged as “recovered”. It is an important sign of the treatment program's quality.

How to Collect and Analyse the Required Data

Calculate the total number of days all children discharged as “recovered” spent in the treatment (i.e. from admission to discharge) and divide it by the number of children discharged as “recovered”.

Disaggregate by

Disaggregate the data by geographical area, gender and age groups.

Important Comments

1) The indicator does not require a separate survey – all data can be gained from the treatment program's regular records.

2) The length of stay in outpatient therapeutic programs (OTPs) usually ranges from 45 – 60 days (about 6.5 – 8.5 weeks). Considerably longer duration can indicate OTP's limited quality.

Access Additional Guidance

SCH (2015) Standardised Indicators and Categories for Better CMAM Reporting (.pdf)
ACF (2011) Guidelines for the Integrated Management of SAM (.pdf)
Global Nutrition Cluster
FAO (2008) Guidelines for Estimating the Month and Year of Birth of Young Children (.pdf)

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