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Assessing Electronic Death Registration and American Red Cross Systems for Mortality Surveillance During Hurricane Sandy, October 29–November 10, 2012, New York City

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 December 2014

Renata E. Howland ,
Ann M. Madsen ,
Leze Nicaj ,
Rebecca S. Noe ,
Mary Casey-Lockyer  and
Elizabeth Begier
Renata E. Howland*
Affiliation:
Bureau of Vital Statistics, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, New York, New York
Ann M. Madsen
Affiliation:
Bureau of Vital Statistics, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, New York, New York
Leze Nicaj
Affiliation:
Office of Chief Medical Examiner, New York, New York
Rebecca S. Noe
Affiliation:
National Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Chamblee, Georgia
Mary Casey-Lockyer
Affiliation:
Disaster Health Services, The American Red Cross, Washington, DC.
Elizabeth Begier
Affiliation:
Bureau of Vital Statistics, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, New York, New York
*
Correspondence and reprint requests to Renata E. Howland, MPH, Research Analyst, NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Long Island City, NY 11101 (e-mail: [email protected]).
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Abstract

Objective

We briefly describe 2 systems that provided disaster-related mortality surveillance during and after Hurricane Sandy in New York City, namely, the New York City Health Department Electronic Death Registration System (EDRS) and the American Red Cross paper-based tracking system.

Methods

Red Cross fatality data were linked with New York City EDRS records by using decedent name and date of birth. We analyzed cases identified by both systems for completeness and agreement across selected variables and the time interval between death and reporting in the system.

Results

Red Cross captured 93% (41/44) of all Sandy-related deaths; the completeness and quality varied by item, and timeliness was difficult to determine. The circumstances leading to death captured by Red Cross were particularly useful for identifying reasons individuals stayed in evacuation zones. EDRS variables were nearly 100% complete, and the median interval between date of death and reporting was 6 days (range: 0-43 days).

Conclusions

Our findings indicate that a number of steps have the potential to improve disaster-related mortality surveillance, including updating Red Cross surveillance forms and electronic databases to enhance timeliness assessments, greater collaboration across agencies to share and use data for public health preparedness, and continued expansion of electronic death registration systems. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2014;8:489-491)

Keywords

hurricanemortalityvital statisticsRed Crosspublic health surveillance
Type
Brief Reports
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 8 , Issue 6 , December 2014 , pp. 489 - 491
Copyright
Copyright © Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc. 2014 

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References

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