OBJECTIVES: This study presents the development of acute and chronic inpatient bed numbers of neurological, neurosurgical and psychiatric professions between 2002-2016 in Hungary.

METHODS: During the analysis descriptive statistical methods were applied. Psychiatric (profession code 9), neurological (code 18) and neurosurgical (code 02) professions inpatient capacity data between 2002 and 2016 were examined in accordance with the National Health Insurance Fund Administration reports.

RESULTS: Referring to 1801 profession code, the number of psychiatric beds showed a steady decline, decreased from 4089 to 2689 in 2002, presenting the effects of capacity regulatory laws. The number of beds were complemented by 248 beds of the 1802 addictology profession introduced in 2013. The neurosurgery active bed numbers increased from 6.62% to 6.81%. Similarly, 0204 neurosurgery beds decreased from 607 to 493, however their proportion to the number of active beds showed a steady growth. Based on the 0900 neurological code data, due to the care development law, the number of beds reduced from 2599 with 22%. This tendency continued until 2012, when only 1844 neurological beds could be found. As a result of the Semmelweis Plan the number of beds increased by more than 8%, however, considering the 0901 stroke beds, the change was more than 10%. The number of chronic neurological beds increased from 187 to 346 in 2006, and from 2012 they merged into rehabilitation bed numbers. The law did not affect the 1804 chronic psychiatric bed numbers since the 5402 bed number in 2006 increased by 9.7%, followed by a slightly downward path by 2013.

CONCLUSIONS: The neurological, neurosurgical and psychiatric bed numbers are markedly affected by the care development law, which induced a number of major changes in health care system. Semmelweis Plan had an effect on the healthcare system by the restructuring of the profession types instead the reduction of bed numbers.