A global assessment of civil registration and vital statistics systems: monitoring data quality and progress

Applying a vital statistics performance index to assess the performance of CRVS systems in 148 countries or territories.

Abstract: Assessing the quality of cause of death data in six high-income countries: Australia, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Japan and Switzerland

Reprint of abstract for paper assessing the policy utility of national cause of death data in six high-income countries with highly developed health information systems.

Advocating for civil registration: guide to developing a business case for civil registration

Practical information on the six-step approach to preparing and using a business case in support of a civil registration system.

An economic evaluation of data collection methods for vital statistics

A systematic framework to guide investment decisions by donors and governments on methods of data collection for vital statistics.

Are well functioning civil registration and vital statistics systems associated with better health outcomes?

We examine whether well functioning CRVS systems are associated with improved population health outcomes.

Assessing the production, quality and use of national vital statistics: a case study of the Philippines

Findings from the review of the CRVS system in the Philippines (2009), which helped to understand how the system worked and identifying weaker areas.

Avaliação da qualidade dos dados sobre mortalidade no 18 Brasil de 2000 a 2016

Chapter 18 of 'SAÚDE BRASIL 2018 - Uma análise da situação de saúde e das doenças e agravos crônicos: desafios e perspectivas'.

Improving civil registration and vital statistics systems - Lessons learned from the application of health information tools in Asia and the Pacific

A review of the application of the comprehensive CRVS assessment tool in Asia and the Pacific.

Improving COD certification practices in the Pacific

Findings of study to determine the efficacy and accessibility of the certification module of the WHO's web-based ICD training tool.

Meeting on strengthening the quality of information on causes of death in Brazil

The objective of the meeting was to discuss the improvement of the quality of the information on causes of death in Brazil, with the participation of the three spheres of Government, Civil Society, Universities, and International Institutions. This report summarises the main outcomes of the meeting, including each of the main sessions, comments from participants, and links to additional resources.

Progress in the data revolution

As momentum for CRVS builds, examples of country successes in strengthening their systems emerge.

Promoting the periodic assessment of the quality of medical records and cause-of-death data

A rare look into the validation of cause of death information from routine reporting systems.

Rapid assessment of vital statistics systems

Evaluation of the application of the WHO/Health Information Systems Knowledge Hub tool in 26 countries in the Asia–Pacific region.

Robustness of the Tariff method for diagnosing verbal autopsies: impact of additional site data on the relationship between symptom and cause

Verbal autopsy (VA) is increasingly being considered as a cost-effective method to improve cause of death information in countries with low quality vital registration. VA algorithms that use empirical data have an advantage over expert derived algorithms in that they use responses to the VA instrument as a reference instead of physician opinion. It is unclear how stable these data driven algorithms, such as the Tariff 2.0 method, are to cultural and epidemiological variations in populations where they might be employed. VAs were conducted in three sites in the Philippines, Bangladesh and Papua New Guinea as part of the Improving Methods to Measure Comparable Mortality by Cause (IMMCMC) study. Similar diagnostic criteria and cause lists as the Population Health Metrics Research Consortium (PHMRC) study were used to identify gold standard deaths. This paper presents the assessment of changes in Tariffs by examining the proportion of Tariffs that changed significantly after the addition of the IMMCMC dataset to the PHMRC dataset.

Strategic planning to strengthen civil registration and vital statistics systems

Guidance for using findings from a comprehensive assessment.

Strengthening civil registration and vital statistics for births, deaths and causes of death: Resource Kit

This Resource Kit is designed to support countries in planning and implementing improvements to their civil registration and vital statistics (CRVS) systems. It has been compiled using critically assessed materials drawn from many sources, and is presented in a user-friendly way that is accessible to both experts and users with a general interest in evidence-based decision-making. The Resource Kit will enable all users to identify, locate and make use of core standards, tools, materials and country experiences.

Strengthening health information systems in the Asia-Pacific region

Aims, objectives and contributions of the Health Information Systems Knowledge Hub at the University of Queensland, 2008-2013

Symptom recall and the diagnostic accuracy of verbal autopsies

Determines how recall of item responses varied between interviews over time and how much loss of recall affected the accuracy of CSMFs.

The quality of medical death certification of cause of death in hospitals in rural Bangladesh

Accurate and timely data on cause of death are critically important for guiding health programs and policies. Physicians in Bangladeshi hospitals had difficulties in completing the MCCD correctly. Physicians routinely made errors in death certification practices and medical record quality was poor. There is an urgent need to improve death certification practices and the quality of hospital data in Bangladesh if these data are to be useful for policy.

The WHO 2016 verbal autopsy instrument: An international standard suitable for automated analysis by InterVA, InSilicoVA, and Tariff 2.0

Towards universal civil registration and vital statistics systems: the time is now

We argue that improved CRVS will be key to tackle the health & development challenges of coming decades and to monitor progress. Source: The Lancet

Widening inequalities in premature mortality in Australia, 2006-16

This study uses Australian death registration data from 2006-2016 to measure the extent of and change in inequalities in premature mortality (under 75 years) by socio-economic status and remoteness.