The Department does not centrally hold information about the proportion of inpatients who had their hospital stay prolonged by adverse drug reactions. During 2004-05, there were 68,389 finished consultant episodes (FCE) where adverse drug reactions were identified as a secondary diagnosis in hospitals in England.
A FCE is defined as a period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. These figures do not represent the number of patients, as an individual may have more than one episode of care within the year. The secondary diagnosis shows diagnoses relevant to the episode of case but will not have been recorded as the main reason for admission. It is also not possible to say whether the drugs were prescribed and administered in hospital or in primary care.