Estimating death rates in complex humanitarian emergencies using the network survival method.

ABSTRACT: Reliable estimates of death rates in complex humanitarian emergencies are critical for assessing the severity of a crisis and for effectively allocating resources. However, in many humanitarian settings, logistical and security concerns make conventional methods for estimating death rates infeasible. We develop and test a new method for estimating death rates in humanitarian emergencies using reports of deaths in survey respondents' social networks. To test our method, we collected original data in Tanganyika Province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (n = 5311), a setting where reliable estimates of crude death rates (CDR) are in high demand. Qualitative fieldwork suggested testing 2 different types of personal networks as the basis for CDR estimates: deaths among immediate neighbor

SUBMITTER: Breen CF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12780780 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature