Two thirds of global deaths are unregistered, and in 180 countries - home to 80% of the world's population - causes of death are not recorded reliably. Such lack of clarity makes it very difficult to see where best to target public health programs and monitor their effectiveness. Now, a new app that can run on smartphones and tablets promises to change this
The new app can be used to collect information about causes of death directly from the deceased's family members.--Image credit: University of Melbourne
The short "verbal autopsy" app is the brainchild of a 10-year collaboration led by the University of Melbourne in Australia and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) University of Washington in Seattle.
A new study paper in the journal BMC Medicine explains the process behind the new app and how the team tested it in several countries.Study leader Alan Lopez, a professor in the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health and an international expert on use of health data for the development of health systems and policy, says:"Up-to-date, reliable information on what people are dying from and at what age, is really important for policies to prevent premature death. Our app provides a way to do this, quickly, simply, cheaply and effectively, in real time, with the power of technology."
He explains that accurate information on causes of death is important for monitoring disease and injury trends and keeping track of emerging health problems. Without such data, we do not have the markers to show us whether programs and policies are working.
The development of the new app was done in two stages. First, the team redesigned and tested a short "verbal autopsy" questionnaire and tested it in India, the Philippines, Mexico and Tanzania.In the second stage, the researchers field-tested the app in China, Sri Lanka and Papua New Guinea.
Two thirds of global deaths are unregistered, and in 180 countries - home to 80% of the world's population - causes of death are not recorded reliably. Such lack of clarity makes it very difficult to see where best to target public health programs and monitor their effectiveness. Now, a new app that can run on smartphones and tablets promises to change this
The new app can be used to collect information about causes of death directly from the deceased's family members.--Image credit: University of Melbourne
The short "verbal autopsy" app is the brainchild of a 10-year collaboration led by the University of Melbourne in Australia and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) University of Washington in Seattle.
A new study paper in the journal BMC Medicine explains the process behind the new app and how the team tested it in several countries.Study leader Alan Lopez, a professor in the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health and an international expert on use of health data for the development of health systems and policy, says:"Up-to-date, reliable information on what people are dying from and at what age, is really important for policies to prevent premature death. Our app provides a way to do this, quickly, simply, cheaply and effectively, in real time, with the power of technology."
He explains that accurate information on causes of death is important for monitoring disease and injury trends and keeping track of emerging health problems. Without such data, we do not have the markers to show us whether programs and policies are working.
The development of the new app was done in two stages. First, the team redesigned and tested a short "verbal autopsy" questionnaire and tested it in India, the Philippines, Mexico and Tanzania.In the second stage, the researchers field-tested the app in China, Sri Lanka and Papua New Guinea.