Evidence map›Paper›PMID 29495961›Full record

ArticleBMC medicine2018

Hospital Mortality - a neglected but rich source of information supporting the transition to higher quality health systems in low and middle income countries.

Mike English, Paul Mwaniki, Thomas Julius, Mercy Chepkirui, David Gathara, Paul O Ouma, Peter Cherutich, Emelda A Okiro, Robert W Snow

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC medicine, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 27 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
27citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
18.7field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

27 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 64 citations in OpenAlex.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors at 3 institutions in 3 countries.

Mike EnglishKEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, P.O. Box 43640, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya. menglish@kemri-wellcome.org.ORCID 0000-0002-7427-0826
Paul MwanikiKEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, P.O. Box 43640, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya.
Thomas JuliusKEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, P.O. Box 43640, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya.
Mercy ChepkiruiKEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, P.O. Box 43640, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya.
David GatharaKEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, P.O. Box 43640, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya.
Paul O OumaKEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, P.O. Box 43640, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya.
Peter CherutichDepartment of Preventive and Promotive Health, Ministry of Health, Nairobi, Kenya.
Emelda A OkiroKEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, P.O. Box 43640, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya.
Robert W SnowKEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, P.O. Box 43640, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya.
Kenya Medical Research Institute · KEAngkor Hospital for Children · KHMinistry of Health · KE

Funding

DFID 203155Wellcome Trust 097170Wellcome Trust 103602Wellcome Trust 107769Wellcome Trust 201866Wellcome Trust 201866/Z/16/Z
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThere is increasing focus on the strength of primary health care systems in low and middle-income countries (LMIC). There are important roles for higher quality district hospital care within these systems. These hospitals are also sources of information of considerable importance to health systems, but this role, as with the wider roles of district hospitals, has been neglected. KEY MESSAGES: As we make efforts to develop higher quality health systems in LMIC we highlight the critical importance of district hospitals focusing here on how data on hospital mortality offers value: i) in understanding disease burden; ii) as part of surveillance and impact monitoring; iii) as an entry point to exploring system failures; and iv) as a lens to examine variability in health system performance and possibly as a measure of health system quality in its own right. However, attention needs paying to improving data quality by addressing reporting gaps and cause of death reporting. Ideally enabling the collection of basic, standardised patient level data might support at least simple case-mix and case-severity adjustment helping us understand variation. Better mortality data could support impact evaluation, benchmarking, exploration of links between health system inputs and outcomes and critical scrutiny of geographic variation in quality and outcomes of care. Improved hospital information is a neglected but broadly valuable public good.

conclusionAccurate, complete and timely hospital mortality reporting is a key attribute of a functioning health system. It can support countries' efforts to transition to higher quality health systems in LMIC enabling national and local advocacy, accountability and action.

Indexed as

Hospital MortalityQuality of Health CareHumansIncome

Identifiers

PMID29495961
PMCPMC5833062
OpenAlexW2794455936

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.