Background Despite the fact that the A6 mortality
reporting system has been operating for almost 20 years
in Vietnam, there has been no systematic evaluation of
the system. This study assesses the completeness,
sensitivity and positive predictive value of the system in
relation to injury related mortality.
Methods Evaluation of the A6 system was undertaken
in three (geographically distributed) provinces in
Vietnam. Deaths identified in the A6 system were
compared with deaths identified by an independent
consensus panel to determine the per cent
completeness of the A6 system. Verbal autopsies (VA)
were conducted for all identified deaths from the
consensus panels, and the sensitivity and positive
predictive value of the A6 system were assessed using
the VAs as the reference.
Results 5273 deaths were identified from the A6
system with a further 340 cases identified by the
independent consensus panel (total n¼5613). Injury
related deaths accounted for 13.6% (n¼763) of all
deaths with an overall injury mortality rate of 55.3 per
100 000 person years. The per cent completeness of the
A6 system in relation to injury deaths was 93.9% with
a sensitivity of 75.4%, specificity of 98.4% and positive
predictive value of 88.4%.
Conclusions The A6 mortality reporting system is
embedded within the commune health system and is the
lead mortality reporting system for the Ministry of
Health. The system performs well in relation to its
completeness and classification of injury related deaths.
With further enhancements and ongoing support from
government and donor agencies, the A6 system will be
a valuable resource for identifying and planning
preventive strategies targeting the leading causes of
injury related deaths in Vietnam.