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Document And Entity Information	9 Months Ended
Document And Entity Information	Sep. 30, 2011	Oct. 31, 2011 Common Class A [Member]	Oct. 31, 2011 Common Class B [Member]	Oct. 31, 2011 Common Class C [Member]	Oct. 31, 2011 Common Class D [Member]
Document Type	10-Q
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Sep. 30, 2011
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2011
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3
Trading Symbol	uhs
Entity Registrant Name	UNIVERSAL HEALTH SERVICES INC
Entity Central Index Key	0000352915
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		6,625,708	89,212,311	664,000	33,358