Term: Percentile

Glossary Definition

Last Updated: 2012-04-20

Definition:

"Percentiles are values that divide a set of observations into 100 equal parts. The percentile rank is the proportion of values in a distribution that a specific value is greater than or equal to." (from Statistics Canada - Percentiles - web page - accessed April 20, 2012). For example, the 95th percentile refers to an observation or datum that ranks 95th among the 100 observations and the 99th percentile refers to an observation or datum that ranks 99th among the 100 observations.

References 

• Garland A, Fransoo R, Olafson K, Ramsey C, Yogendran M, Chateau D, McGowan K. The Epidemiology and Outcomes of Critical Illness in Manitoba. Winnipeg, MB: Manitoba Centre for Health Policy, 2012. [Report] [Summary] (View)