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

Formats for mortality rate

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Mortality rates should be expressed in standard formats so that they can be compared between populations and between time periods for the same populations.

1

Which is true of the comparison of the following two mortality rates? A) 271 deaths per 158,934 population per 13 days B) 445 deaths per 72,072 population per 47 days a) Mortality rate A is greater than mortality rate B b) Mortality rate A is lower than mortality rate B c) The two mortality rates are about the same d) I have no idea without doing a bunch of arithmetic Please select an answerNo, actually they are about the same.No, actually they are about the same.You are strictly correct, but it took you some calculation to reach this answer, didn't it?Correct. You cannot easily compare these rates without calculating them using the same standard population and time period.

Click here for arithmetic comparison

Some common formats for mortality rates are:

Number of deaths per 1000 population per year

This is the format most commonly used by demographers to express annual mortality rates in stable populations

Number of deaths per 10,000 population per day

This is the format used in acute humanitarian emergencies when mortality is changing rapidly and mortality rates are calculated daily or weekly.

Number of deaths per 1000 population per month

This is the format sometimes used in displaced populations after the situation has stabilized and mortality rates are calculated less frequently.

Regardless of which format it is expressed in, the mortality rate reflects the same risk of death. Conversion from one format to another is just an exercise in arithmetic.