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Direct Link to Research Document:
"IN ORDER TO IMPROVE CHILD
SURVIVAL, THERE IS A NEED TO TARGET NEONATAL MORTALITY. IN THIS PURSUIT, VALID
LOCAL AND NATIONAL STATISTICS ON CHILD HEALTH ARE ESSENTIAL.
THIS STUDY ANALYZES TO WHAT EXTENT
BIRTHS AND NEONATAL DEATHS ARE UNREPORTED IN A LOW-INCOME COUNTRY AND DISCUSSES
THE CONSEQUENCES AT LOCAL AND INTERNATIONAL LEVELS FOR EFFORTS TO SAVE NEWBORN
LIVES.
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The consequences of under-reporting births and deaths in Vietnam
Authors: M. Malqvist; L. Eriksson; N. T.
Nga
Publisher: BMC International Health and
Human Rights, 2008
This paper, published in BMC International Health and Human Rights, analyses
to what extent births and neonatal deaths are unreported in Vietnam and
discusses the consequences at local and international levels for efforts to
save newborn lives. The paper collected information on all births and neonatal
deaths in Quang Ninh province in Northern Vietnam in 2005 through group
interviews with key informants, questionnaires and examination of health
facility records. Results were compared with the official reports of the
Provincial Health Bureau.
The paper finds evidence of under-reporting of neonatal mortality. This was
mainly attributable to a dysfunctional reporting system and the fact that
families, not the health system, were made responsible to register births and
deaths. This underreporting has severe consequences at local, national and
international levels. At a national and international level the perceived low
mortality rate is manifested in a lack of investments in perinatal health
programmes. The paper concludes that improving reporting systems on births and
neonatal deaths is a matter of human rights and a prerequisite for reducing
neonatal mortality in order to reach the fourth millennium development goal.
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