Global Health at a Glance: Health Status Indicators

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Infant Mortality Rate
Life Expectancy at Birth
Maternity Mortality Ratio
Under-5 Mortality Rate
Health-Adjusted Life Expectancy (HALE)
Disability-Adjusted Life Year (DALY)
References

Introduction

The task of assessing health levels within the global community is incredibly complicated due to the presence of a wide array of factors that influence people’s well-being. Nevertheless, there are homogenous standards for evaluating crucial health indicators that allow determining the rates of global health, as well as the related concerns. Due to the homogeneity in their definitions, they allow assessing the global health status quite accurately, yet a more complex assessment may be required to address culture-specific health issues.

Infant Mortality Rate

The infant mortality rate is the correlation between the number of infant deaths within a particular community to the number of successful births in it (). The infant mortality rate allows locating the underlying health threats within the target community. For example, the fact that Afghanistan currently has the highest infant death rate globally indicates that the quality of life and the efficacy of healthcare are desperately low in the specified country (Central Intelligence Agency, 2019a).

Life Expectancy at Birth

The life expectancy at birth is an important metric that shows how many years since birth one is likely to live given the current mortality rates within the state. The tool in question helps to define the general probability of mortality in a specific population, thus establishing the level of public health. For example, in the U.S., life expectancy at birth is currently at 80.1 years, which is comparatively high (Central Intelligence Agency, 2019b).

Maternity Mortality Ratio

Maternity mortality ratio indicates how many pregnant women die in childbirth. The specified characteristic shows the level of nursing and obstetrics quality in the target environment. For instance, tin the UAE, the 2015 estimate shows 6 deaths per 100,000 live births (Central Intelligence Agency, 2015).

Under-5 Mortality Rate

As the title suggests, the under-5 mortality rate is the percentage of children that have died before the age of five. The specified tool allows indicating the presence of issues such as the absence of vaccination, health literacy, and the related health issues. For instance, in Nepal, the specified index has reached 21.92% (Ghimire et al., 2019).

Health-Adjusted Life Expectancy (HALE)

The Health-Adjusted Life Expectancy (HALE) rate is the number of years that a person with a particular health concern is expected to live on average. The specified parameter shows a range of possible public health issues, informing nursing strategies. For instance, in Canada, HALE for HIV-infected men and women averaged at 58 and 63 correspondingly (Hogg et al., 2017).

Disability-Adjusted Life Year (DALY)

The Disability-Adjusted Life Year (DALY) index shows the total number of years that a person has spent in a disabled state compared to the ones during which the person in question was healthy. DALY allows defining the risk of mortality in people with disabilities when exposed to specific health risks. For example, in Kuwait, the analysis of DALY has helped to increase life expectancy in its citizens up to 78.94% (Al-Hemoud, Gasana, Al-Dabbous, Al-Shatti, & Al-Khayat, 2018).

When choosing an indicator for evaluating the health status of a developing country, one might consider picking the infant mortality rate since it provides an instant characterization of the environment and the threats that people face in it. The infant mortality rate indicates the probability of survival within the target setting, as well as the problems to which one is likely to be subjected when living in the specified conditions. Moreover, the infant mortality rate may also give insight into the problems of pregnancy and birth, which may affect the specified index quite drastically, Thus, the infant mortality rate does not paint the full picture of the health issues within a specific developing country, yet it offers an instant assessment of its healthcare and health literacy.

References

Al-Hemoud, A., Gasana, J., Al-Dabbous, A., Al-Shatti, A., & Al-Khayat, A. (2018). Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) in terms of Years of Life Lost (YLL) due to premature adult mortalities and postneonatal infant mortalities attributed to PM2. 5 and PM10 exposures in Kuwait. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 15(11), 2609-2623. Web.

Central Intelligence Agency. (2015). Country comparison: Maternal mortality rate. Web.

Central Intelligence Agency. (2019a). Country comparison: Infant mortality rate. Web.

Central Intelligence Agency. (2019b). Field listing: Life expectancy at birth. Web.

Ghimire, P. R., Agho, K. E., Ezeh, O. K., Renzaho, A., Dibley, M., & Raynes-Greenow, C. (2019). Under-five mortality and associated factors: Evidence from the Nepal Demographic and Health Survey (2001–2016). International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(7), 1241-1247. Web.

Hogg, R. S., Eyawo, O., Collins, A. B., Zhang, W., Jabbari, S., Hull, M. W.,… Justice, A. C. (2017). The measurement of Health Adjusted Life Expectancy (HALE) on a population-based observational cohort of HIV-positive and negative men and women in British Columbia. The Lancet. HIV, 4(6), 270-276. Web.

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