| Description: |
The purpose of the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) is to obtain information about the amount and distribution of illness, its effects in terms of disability and chronic impairments, and the kinds of health services people receive.
Of particular interest to child care and early education researchers is Part 5 of this dataset, the Sample Child File, which contains data on child health, child care access and utilization, child mental health, and child mental health services. The Child Conditions, Limitation of Activity and Health Status Section (CHS) of this file is constructed of questions regarding mental retardation, developmental delays, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) or Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), Down?s syndrome, autism, and a number of other ailments and disorders, as well as a determination of school-loss days. The Child Health Care Access and Utilization Section (CAU) provides information on access to health care, dental care, and health care provider contact, such as having a usual place for sick and preventative care, change in place of care, reasons for a delay in getting medical care, and the inability to afford medical care, time since last dental visit, and visits and telephone contacts to or from medical doctors and other health care professionals. The Child Mental Health Brief Section (CMB) is a behavioral screening for children ages 4 to 17 years with data on the duration of a child?s problem and the impact that the problem has on the child and his/her family. Child Mental Health Services (CMS) section includes information about a health care provider visit for mental health services, medication prescribed for difficulties with concentration, hyperactivity orimpulsivity, receipt of any non-pharmacologic treatment or help for difficulties with concentration, hyperactivity or impulsivity, and the type of provider for this treatment, mental health private practice, clinic, or center. The Sample Child file also includes a Child Influenza Immunization Section (CFI) detailing information on receipt of a flu vaccination in the past 12 months and month and year of the most recent flu vaccination.
In addition Part 3 of this dataset, the Person Level File, contains information about children who receive special education or early intervention services as well as information regarding limitations in play activities for young children. Other aspects of the Person Level file are described below.
The 2006 NHIS also contains Household, Family, Person, and Sample Adult files from the basic module, as well as Injury and Poison episode files.
Part 1, Household Level File, contains data on type of living quarters, number of families in the household responding and not responding, and the month and year of the interview for each sampling unit.
Part 2, Family Level File, is made up of reconstructed variables from the person-level data of the basic module and includes demographic information and data on family size, major activities, health status, activity limits, and employment status, along with industry and occupation.
Part 3, Personal Level File, provides information on all family members with respect to health status, limitation of daily activities, cognitive impairment, and health conditions, doctor visits, hospital stays, and health care access and utilization.
A randomly-selected adult in each family was interviewed for Part 4, Sample Adult File, regarding respiratory conditions, renal conditions, AIDS, joint symptoms, and other health related issues.
Part 6, Injury/Poison Episode File, is an episode-based file that contains information about the external cause and nature of the injury or poisoning episode and what the person was doing at the time of the injury or poisoning episode, in addition to the date and place of occurrence. Part 7 is a verbatim file of the same episode, containing edited narrative text descriptions of the injury or poisoning. |
