Abbreviated Name:
Coverage of essential health services
Indicator Name:
Coverage of essential health services
Domain:
Service coverage
Related Terms:
Essential health services
Definition:
Coverage of essential health services (defined as the average coverage of essential services based on tracer interventions that include reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health, infectious diseases, non-communicable diseases and service capacity and access, among the general and the most disadvantaged population). The indicator is an index reported on a unit less scale of 0 to 100, which is computed as the geometric mean of 14 tracer indicators of health service coverage..
Measurment Method:
The index is computed with geometric means, based on the methods used for the Human Development Index. The calculation of the 3.8.1 indicator requires first preparing the 14 tracer indicators so that they can be combined into the index, and then computing the index from those values.
The 14 tracer indicators are first all placed on the same scale, with 0 being the lowest value and 100 being the optimal value. For most indicators, this scale is the natural scale of measurement, e.g., the percentage of infants who have been immunized ranges from 0 to 100 percent. However, for a few indicators additional rescaling is required to obtain appropriate values from 0 to 100, as follows: • Rescaling based on a non-zero minimum to obtain finer resolution (this “stretches” the distribution across countries): prevalence of non-raised blood pressure and prevalence of nonuse of tobacco are both rescaled using a minimum value of 50%. rescaled value = (X-50)/(100-50)*100 • Rescaling for a continuous measure: mean fasting plasma glucose, which is a continuous measure (units of mmol/L), is converted to a scale of 0 to 100 using the minimum theoretical biological risk (5.1 mmol/L) and observed maximum across countries (7.1 mmol/L). rescaled value = (7.1 - original value)/(7.1-5.1)*100
Note that in countries with low malaria burden, the tracer indicator for use of insecticide-treated nets is dropped from the calculation.
• Maximum thresholds for rate indicators: hospital bed density and health workforce density are both capped at maximum thresholds, and values above this threshold are held constant at 100. These thresholds are based on minimum values observed across OECD
The 14 tracer indicators are first all placed on the same scale, with 0 being the lowest value and 100 being the optimal value. For most indicators, this scale is the natural scale of measurement, e.g., the percentage of infants who have been immunized ranges from 0 to 100 percent. However, for a few indicators additional rescaling is required to obtain appropriate values from 0 to 100, as follows: • Rescaling based on a non-zero minimum to obtain finer resolution (this “stretches” the distribution across countries): prevalence of non-raised blood pressure and prevalence of nonuse of tobacco are both rescaled using a minimum value of 50%. rescaled value = (X-50)/(100-50)*100 • Rescaling for a continuous measure: mean fasting plasma glucose, which is a continuous measure (units of mmol/L), is converted to a scale of 0 to 100 using the minimum theoretical biological risk (5.1 mmol/L) and observed maximum across countries (7.1 mmol/L). rescaled value = (7.1 - original value)/(7.1-5.1)*100
Note that in countries with low malaria burden, the tracer indicator for use of insecticide-treated nets is dropped from the calculation.
• Maximum thresholds for rate indicators: hospital bed density and health workforce density are both capped at maximum thresholds, and values above this threshold are held constant at 100. These thresholds are based on minimum values observed across OECD
Numerator:
This indicator is based on aggregate estimate
Denominator
This indicator is based on aggregate estimate
Estimation method:
N/A
Disaggregation:
Geographic location, household wealth
Primary data sources:
Many of the tracer indicators of health service coverage are measured by household surveys. However, administrative data, facility data, facility surveys, and sentinel surveillance systems are utilized for certain indicators.
Alternate data sources:
N/A
Measurment frequency:
Data collection varies from every 1 to 5 years across tracer indicators. For example, country data on immunizations and HIV treatment are reported annually, whereas household surveys to collect information on child treatment may occur every 3-5 years, depending on the country.