Why SQL Matters in Healthcare#
Healthcare generates enormous amounts of data every day — patient admissions, ED presentations, surgical outcomes, medication records and more.
SQL is the language that makes sense of all of it.
Basic SQL Query Structure#
SELECT
patient_id,
admission_date,
diagnosis_code
FROM
inpatient_admissions
WHERE
admission_date >= '2026-01-01'
ORDER BY
admission_date DESCReal World Example — ED Presentations#
SELECT
CAST(presentation_date AS DATE) as date,
COUNT(*) as total_presentations,
AVG(wait_time_minutes) as avg_wait_time
FROM
ed_presentations
WHERE
presentation_date >= DATEADD(month, -1, GETDATE())
GROUP BY
CAST(presentation_date AS DATE)
ORDER BY
date DESCNext Steps#
In the next post we’ll cover:
- Joining multiple tables
- Window functions
- Performance optimisation
Stay tuned! 🚀