Reference metadata describe statistical concepts and methodologies used for the collection and generation of data. They provide information on data quality and, since they are strongly content-oriented, assist users in interpreting the data. Reference metadata, unlike structural metadata, can be decoupled from the data.
National Bureau of Statistics of the Republic of Moldova (NBS)
1.2. Contact organisation unit
Social Services Statistics Division
1.3. Contact name
Confidential because of GDPR
1.4. Contact person function
Confidential because of GDPR
1.5. Contact mail address
106 Grenoble Street, MD-2019, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova
1.6. Contact email address
Confidential because of GDPR
1.7. Contact phone number
Confidential because of GDPR
1.8. Contact fax number
Confidential because of GDPR
2.1. Metadata last certified
25 June 2025
2.2. Metadata last posted
25 June 2025
2.3. Metadata last update
25 June 2025
3.1. Data description
Statistics on healthcare non-expenditure provide information on national healthcare facilities, healthcare human resources and healthcare utilisation.
The people active in the healthcare sector (physicians, dentists, midwives and nurses, carring personal, pharmacists, etc.);
The available healthcare resources and facilities (hospital beds, beds in residential care facilities, etc.);
The health activities (hospital discharges, exams and surgical procedures, ambulatory care data, etc.).
Annual national data are provided in absolute numbers or as a rate of a relevant population.
Data are based mainly on administrative records. Statistical surveys in the field of formal education provide the necessary information on number of graduates of formal education programs.
Surgical procedures are classified according to the International Classification of Procedures in Medicine, approved by the World Health Organization during the 29th General Assembly (May 1976). The International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10) is used for discharge data, referring to the principal diagnosis at the end of the hospitalization. The Classification of education programs in the Republic of Moldova (MoldCED) is harmonized with the corresponding international standard ISCED-2011. The country has not yet transposed Directive 2005/36/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 September 2005 on the recognition of professional qualifications.
The Eurostat manual on healthcare non-expenditure statistics provides an overview of the classifications, both for mandatory variables and variables provided on voluntary basis. The NUTS Classification has not yet been agreed with Eurostat.
Other national deviations: see Annex at the bottom of the page.
3.3. Coverage - sector
Public Health sector whether public or private. In some specific cases data do not provide full coverage of the private health care providers (see the Sources and Methods).
Statistical surveys in the field of formal education cover all units with legal personality, regardless of ownership, which carry out the activity "Education".
3.4. Statistical concepts and definitions
The healthcare non-expenditure statistics describe the public health sector from a non-monetary perspective. The statistics explain the number or rate of different healthcare resources, facilities and utilisations. Statistical definitions for individual variables are defined according to the Eurostat manual on healthcare non-expenditure statistics. National statistical concepts and national definitions deviating from Regulation (EU) 2022/2294 are described in the Sources and Methods.
3.5. Statistical unit
Administrative data sources: health professionals, persons in full-time equivalent units, health care facilities, hospital beds, discharged patients, doctor consultations, immunisations against influenza, diagnostic exams and surgical procedures.
Statistical surveys in the field of Education: graduates.
3.6. Statistical population
all health care staff;
all available beds in hospitals or in nursing and residential care facilities;
all discharges or procedures performed in all hospitals;
all educational units.
3.7. Reference area
Data do not include the data on districts from the left side of the river Nistru and municipality Bender.
3.8. Coverage - Time
Time series for hospitals and beds are available from 1980. More data are available from 2014.
Time coverage for each variable is detailed in the annex.
3.9. Base period
Not applicable
Data presented in absolute numbers and rate per capita (consultations).
The data also expressed in % for immunisation against influenza (population aged 65 and over) and occupancy rate of beds.
Calendar year, depending on the data set: annual average data (hospital beds) or data as of December 31.
For medical graduates, the reference period is the end of the academic year.
For influenza vaccination, data are presented according to the influenza season, thus data refer to the season preceeding the reference year.
6.1. Institutional Mandate - legal acts and other agreements
Association Agreement between the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community and their Member States, of the one part, and the Republic of Moldova of the other part (in force from 2016), Title IV, Chapter 6 „Statistics”, art. 42 (b) provides for „progressive alignment of the statistical system of the Republic of Moldova with the European Statistical System”; The EU-Republic of Moldova Association Agenda 2021-2027 (Recommendation no. 1/2022 of the EU-Republic of Moldova Association Council of 22 August 2022 on the EU-Republic of Moldova Association Agenda (2022/1997), Chapter IV.10 Statistics provides the following: „The Parties will work together to ensure compliance of the National Statistical System of the Republic of Moldova with the EU laws on statistics set out in the Eurostat Statistical Requirements Compendium, as well as compliance with the European Statistics Code of Practice, which sets the principles for the development, production and dissemination of statistics within the European Statistical System for „Statistics” domain.
The Law on Official Statistics No. 93 from 26 May 2017 and other legislative and normative acts, NBS management decisions and orders. The Law on Official Statistics regulates the organization and functioning of the system of official statistics and sets the legal framework for the development, production, dissemination and coordination of official statistics (art.1).
Art. 5 of the Law provides that the production of statistical information is based on respecting the following principles: impartiality, objectiveness, relevance, transparency, confidentiality, cost-efficiency etc. The National Bureau of Statistics as a central authority in the field of statistics, is an independent institutional and professional administrative authority, created by the Government in order to coordinate the national statistical system on the development and production of official statistics.
The legislative and normative acts governing the activity of the NBS are available on its official website, under the 'About' section.
6.2. Institutional Mandate - data sharing
Joint Questionnaire on Non-Monetary Health Care Statistics, which is carried by Eurostat, OECD and WHO-Europe.
7.1. Confidentiality - policy
National normative act regarding confidentiality in statistics: Law No.93 from 26 May 2017 on Official Statistics (in romanian). According to art. 19 of the Law on Official Statistics, producers of official statistics shall take all regulatory, administrative, technical and organizational measures to protect confidential data and prevent their disclosure. Chapter VII of the above-mentioned law stipulates that data collected, processed and stored for the production of statistical information are confidential if they allow the direct or indirect identification of the respondents. The following shall not be considered confidential: a) data that can be obtained from publicly accessible sources according to the legislation; b) individual data referring to address, telephone, name, type of activity, number of employees of legal entities and individual entrepreneurs; c) data referring to public enterprises, institutions and organizations funded from the budget, submitted at the request of the public administration authorities.
According to art. 20, access to confidential information is granted to the persons who, according to their official functions, participate in the production of statistical information having access to the extent that individual data is required to produce this information. The same article stipulates that, the access to individual data, which do not allow the direct identification of respondents, can be offered for scientific survey projects, whose expected results do not refer to identifiable individual units, under the regulation approved by the central statistical authority.
7.2. Confidentiality - data treatment
NBS uses administrative sources from the National Agency for Public Health annual exhaustive surveys. The data used are aggregated and follow Art. 23 (5) of the Law on Official Statistics according to which statistical information cannot be disseminated to users if it refers to 1-3 statistical units. If the statistical data contain confidential information, they are not disseminated, but aggregated at the minimum available level that ensures data confidentiality protection.
8.1. Release calendar
Annually the data Release calendar is developed by NBS. Data on medical institutions, physicians, other medical staff, hospital beds, average length of stay, inpatients, consultations, surgical procedures are disseminated in Press releases or other statistical publications such us: Statistical Yearbook, Territorial statistics, Statistical pocket-book "Moldova in figures" and Statistical database, according to the Release calendar.
Other data from administrative sources provided through the JQNMHCS are not yet disseminated by the NBS.
According to the Law No. 93 of 26 May 2017, Article 23:
a) Producers of official statistics are required to disseminate statistical information within the deadlines specified in the statistical work program and the Release calendar.
b) The dissemination of statistical information provided in the Statistical Work Program (SWP) to all categories of users is free of charge and ensures equal access in terms of volume, quality, and dissemination timing.
Access to published data and metadata is free under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license.
All news releases and statistical publications produced by NBS are available on its official website. The NBS website and the Statistical Database represent the most important sources of information, ensuring user access to various statistical data and transparency regarding NBS activities.
News releases are sent to all subscribers, including government institutions and the media. Non-standard tables that are not included in the SWP can be obtained for a fee covering the additional processing required to generate the data.
Annually
10.1. Dissemination format - News release
News-releases are published on the official page of NBS under the Media/News Releases section according to the Release calendar.
10.2. Dissemination format - Publications
Publications developed by NBS containing statistical data on health care statistics: Statistical Yearbook, Territorial statistics, Statistical pocket-book "Moldova in figures". Access to electronic format publications on the NBS official web page can be found, under the Products and services / Publications section.
The data available in official statistics are provided by the National Agency for Public Health in aggregated form, so there are no microdata to be offered to researchers upon request.
10.5. Dissemination format - other
Data are provided on demand to users besides those available in the statistical publications, news releases in accordance with the Law on Official Statistics. Requests can be sent personally, by post, by e-mail or via online web form, under the Products and services / Statistical data request section. Statistical data are provided based on legal acts or on demand to Eurostat and other international organisations (WHO, OECD, UN, national statistical institutes etc.)
The Single Integrated Metadata Structure (SIMS), which is the standard for quality reporting, is published in the Eurostat Database for every variable pertaining to the Joint, non-Monetary Health Care questionnaire, as from reference year 2023.
11.1. Quality assurance
The quality of statistical data is ensured by adhering to the Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics adopted by the UN General Assembly on 29 January 2014, as well as those established in the national Law on Official Statistics no. 93 of 26 May 2017. NBS approved the Quality Policy through Order No.52/a of July 10, 2017. As the data on Health care statistics are derived mainly from administrative data sources, the quality of data collection, processing is under the responsibility of the data owner - the National Agency for Public Health. This is complemented by NBS through consistency and integrity checks of the data to ensure that the output quality standard is reached.
11.2. Quality management - assessment
The following quality criteria are applied to the Health care statistics: relevance, accessibility and clarity, timeliness and punctuality, coherence, comparability and accuracy. The assessment of the National Statistical System and NBS assessment reports are available on the official page, under the About NBS / Assessments and opinions on NBS / Assessment reports section.
12.1. Relevance - User Needs
The main users of statistical information are State authorities and agencies involved in decision making, international organisations, the media, academia, whose needs are to use data for developing and implementing strategies and policies on health.
12.2. Relevance - User Satisfaction
User satisfaction surveys are carried out by NBS every 2-3 years. Results of user satisfaction surveys are available on the official page, under the About NBS / Assessments and opinions on NBS / User surveys section. The latest user survey was carried out in 2025.
12.3. Completeness
For some indicators, national definitions are not aligned with the methodological requirements for the JQNMHC collection. Regional data are not transmitted due to the fact that NUTS Classification has not yet been agreed with Eurostat. In some specific cases data do not provide full coverage of the private health care providers (please see the Sources and Methods).
13.1. Accuracy - overall
The accuracy of the Health care statistics is mainly affected by problems of coverage as the main possible source of errors, namely the geographical coverage of the whole country and in some specific cases the full coverage of private sector. The accuracy of data depends on the accuracy of the data received from National Agency for Public Health. This is complemented by the NBS through consistency and integrity checks to ensure that the output quality standard is reached.
13.2. Sampling error
Not applicable
13.3. Non-sampling error
Concerning non-sampling errors there can be some limitations in data coverage and some measurement errors.
14.1. Timeliness
Data on Health care statistics for the calendar year N, are transmitted by National Agency for Public Health to NBS by 29 April of the year N+1 (120 days after the end of reference year). Data are disseminated in publications - within 180 days and Statistical database - 220 days after the end of the reference year.
14.2. Punctuality
In general, publication of Health care statistics takes place strictly in accordance with published release dates, following the NBS Release calendar, which is available online and provides 12 months’ advance notice of release dates. If there are any changes to the pre-announced release calendar, user's attention will be drawn to the change and the reasons for the change will be explained fully at the same time.
Data are transmitted to Eurostat via EDAMIS within 14 months after the end of the reference year.
15.1. Comparability - geographical
In some specific cases data do not provide full coverage of the private health care providers (see the Sources and Methods). The NUTS Classification is not yet agreed with Eurostat.
15.2. Comparability - over time
The comparison of data over time should be made with caution, breaks in time series occur mainly either due to major changes in the Health Care System leading to differences in the coverage of the data.
The breaks in time series for each variable are explained in the Annex.
15.3. Coherence - cross domain
Statistics are reconcilable with those obtained from other statistical domains, as long as they refer to the same definitions
15.4. Coherence - internal
Coherence between figures is being ensured during the data validation process.
The use of administrative data allows to minimise cost and burden.
17.1. Data revision - policy
The Health care statistics revision is in accordance with data revision policy approved by NBS Order No. 35 of 30 August 2022.
17.2. Data revision - practice
Routine revisions: Relative indicators depending on the number of population are recalculated for the previous year using the final number of the usual resident population. Major revisions: Relative indicators depending on the number of population were revised for the following reason: the use, starting with 2019 of the number of usual resident population, previously the number of resident population was used. Data are corrected in case of mistakes, technical errors and changes operated by the administrative data sources as soon as possible. The revised data are diseminated on the NBS website, under the Statbank / Social statistics / Health Protection section.
18.1. Source data
Data are received from administrative data source: National Agency for Public Health according to the Annual Statistical Work Program.
Statistical report No.17 „Statistical report on medical staff of medical-sanitary institutions”;
Statistical report No.30-san „Statistical report on in-patient activity of the medical-sanitary institution”;
Annex No.1 to the statistical report No.30-san „Statistical report on in-patient activity of the medical-sanitary institution”;
Statistical report No.40-săn „Statistical report of the emergency health assistance station”;
Statistical report No. 1 – aim „Report on the activity of the private economic agent in providing services;
Information System for Surveillance of Communicable Diseases and Public Health Events;
NBS Education Surveys as a data source for graduates:
No. 4-edu „Activity of higher education institutions at the beginning of the academic year”;
No. 3-edu ,,Activity of post-secondary technical vocational education institutions at the beginning of the academic year (Colleges / Centers of Excellence)”.
Data of the Ministry of Health on authorization requests from foreign physicians.
18.2. Frequency of data collection
Annual
18.3. Data collection
Data are collected based mainly on administrative sources and national registers. Aggregated data are annually received directly from the National Agency for Public Health, the responsible authority for producing statistical data in health area, which centralizes the key data on health based on a unique system of primary data collection and processing.
18.4. Data validation
Before publishing the data, consistent validation checks are performed by NBS. The process of validation is based mostly on arithmetical checks to ensure data completeness and internal consistency. The data are also compared with related data from previous years on aggregated level.
18.5. Data compilation
The compilation of health statistics data is carried out by the National Agency for Public Health by centralizing information from questionnaires/reports submitted by medical-sanitary units while the compilation of education data is performed by the National Bureau of Statistics by centralizing information from questionnaires submitted by educational institutions
18.6. Adjustment
Data refer to calendar year, no seasonal adjustment or other adjustment methods are applied.
Statistics on healthcare non-expenditure provide information on national healthcare facilities, healthcare human resources and healthcare utilisation.
The people active in the healthcare sector (physicians, dentists, midwives and nurses, carring personal, pharmacists, etc.);
The available healthcare resources and facilities (hospital beds, beds in residential care facilities, etc.);
The health activities (hospital discharges, exams and surgical procedures, ambulatory care data, etc.).
Annual national data are provided in absolute numbers or as a rate of a relevant population.
Data are based mainly on administrative records. Statistical surveys in the field of formal education provide the necessary information on number of graduates of formal education programs.
25 June 2025
The healthcare non-expenditure statistics describe the public health sector from a non-monetary perspective. The statistics explain the number or rate of different healthcare resources, facilities and utilisations. Statistical definitions for individual variables are defined according to the Eurostat manual on healthcare non-expenditure statistics. National statistical concepts and national definitions deviating from Regulation (EU) 2022/2294 are described in the Sources and Methods.
Administrative data sources: health professionals, persons in full-time equivalent units, health care facilities, hospital beds, discharged patients, doctor consultations, immunisations against influenza, diagnostic exams and surgical procedures.
Statistical surveys in the field of Education: graduates.
all health care staff;
all available beds in hospitals or in nursing and residential care facilities;
all discharges or procedures performed in all hospitals;
all educational units.
Data do not include the data on districts from the left side of the river Nistru and municipality Bender.
Calendar year, depending on the data set: annual average data (hospital beds) or data as of December 31.
For medical graduates, the reference period is the end of the academic year.
For influenza vaccination, data are presented according to the influenza season, thus data refer to the season preceeding the reference year.
The accuracy of the Health care statistics is mainly affected by problems of coverage as the main possible source of errors, namely the geographical coverage of the whole country and in some specific cases the full coverage of private sector. The accuracy of data depends on the accuracy of the data received from National Agency for Public Health. This is complemented by the NBS through consistency and integrity checks to ensure that the output quality standard is reached.
Data presented in absolute numbers and rate per capita (consultations).
The data also expressed in % for immunisation against influenza (population aged 65 and over) and occupancy rate of beds.
The compilation of health statistics data is carried out by the National Agency for Public Health by centralizing information from questionnaires/reports submitted by medical-sanitary units while the compilation of education data is performed by the National Bureau of Statistics by centralizing information from questionnaires submitted by educational institutions
Data are received from administrative data source: National Agency for Public Health according to the Annual Statistical Work Program.
Statistical report No.17 „Statistical report on medical staff of medical-sanitary institutions”;
Statistical report No.30-san „Statistical report on in-patient activity of the medical-sanitary institution”;
Annex No.1 to the statistical report No.30-san „Statistical report on in-patient activity of the medical-sanitary institution”;
Statistical report No.40-săn „Statistical report of the emergency health assistance station”;
Statistical report No. 1 – aim „Report on the activity of the private economic agent in providing services;
Information System for Surveillance of Communicable Diseases and Public Health Events;
NBS Education Surveys as a data source for graduates:
No. 4-edu „Activity of higher education institutions at the beginning of the academic year”;
No. 3-edu ,,Activity of post-secondary technical vocational education institutions at the beginning of the academic year (Colleges / Centers of Excellence)”.
Data of the Ministry of Health on authorization requests from foreign physicians.
Annually
Data on Health care statistics for the calendar year N, are transmitted by National Agency for Public Health to NBS by 29 April of the year N+1 (120 days after the end of reference year). Data are disseminated in publications - within 180 days and Statistical database - 220 days after the end of the reference year.
In some specific cases data do not provide full coverage of the private health care providers (see the Sources and Methods). The NUTS Classification is not yet agreed with Eurostat.
The comparison of data over time should be made with caution, breaks in time series occur mainly either due to major changes in the Health Care System leading to differences in the coverage of the data.
The breaks in time series for each variable are explained in the Annex.
