The use of epidemiological tools in conflict-affected populations: open-access educational resources for policy-makers

Table of Contents

1. Welcome
2. Introduction: Epidemiology in crises
3. Ethical issues in data collection
4. Need for epidemiologic competence
5. Surveys - Introduction
6. Surveys - Description of sampling methods
7. Surveys - Sampling error, bias, accuracy, precision, & sample size
8. Surveys - Resources required for surveys
9. Surveys - Critiquing survey reports
10. Surveillance - When to do surveillance
11. Surveillance - Methods
12. Surveillance - Common problems
13. Programme data
14. Rapid assessment
15. Mortality - Indicators and their measurement
    1. Why measure mortality
    2. Parts of mortality rate
    3. Formats for mortality rate
    4. Types of mortality rates
    5. Mortality rates for children
    6. Number of excess deaths
    7. Measurement of causes of death in surveys
16. Mortality - Data sources
17. Mortality - Interpretation and action
18. Nutrition - Introduction and background
19. Nutrition - Indicators and their measurement
20. Nutrition - Data sources
21. Nutrition - Interpretation and action
22. Health services
23. Vaccination programmes
24. Water supply, sanitation, and shelter
25. Violence
26. Presentation of results
27. Formulating conclusions and recommendations
28. Dissemination and action

Why measure mortality

(go to Outline)

Why is mortality so frequently monitored in humanitarian emergencies?

• Death is the final common outcome of many health and nutrition problems
  • It is a single indicator which can signal a broad range of health problems
• It is easily defined
• Information on deaths is often already collected by authorities

Because monitoring mortality is so useful to public health authorities, mortality registration is mandatory in almost all countries. Vital statistics systems record certain information on each death, such as name, age at death, and cause of death, then sum the number of deaths periodically to calculate mortality rates. However, in many less-developed countries, vital statistics systems are very incomplete. Even in countries with well-functioning systems, such systems often break down early in settings of armed conflict.