Session 3:

Leveraging Opportunities to
Improve Death Certification

Enrique A. Tayag, MD, PHSAE, FPSMID, CESO III

Director IV
DOH-Knowledge Management and Information Technology Service
Health Sector Strategy for 2023-2028
Strategic Objectives
Increase data literacy for
decision making
 IMPORTANCE OF VITAL
STATISTICS FOR THE HEALTH
SECTOR
Primary source of public health information:

1. Data on prevalence and distribution of

mortality by cause
2. Identification of health inequalities
3. For resource allocation
4. Assessment of health systems performance
5. Understanding emerging health challenges
Targets of CRVS Decade 2014-2024
2010 DATA 2024 TARGET

Births Registered 94% 99%

Deaths Registered 66% 90%
Medically attended registered deaths 34% 85%
Reduction of ill-defined or unusable COD
with zero R codes (from registered 0.9% 0.45%
deaths)

Community deaths with underlying COD

determined through standard VA No data 85%
How are we doing so far?
2010 CURRENT 2024
BASELINE DATA TARGET

Births Registered 94% 96%* 99%

Deaths Registered 66% 92%* 90%
Medically attended registered
deaths 34% 56%** 85%
Reduction of ill-defined or
unusable COD with zero R codes 0.9% 1.2%* 0.45%
(from registered deaths)

Community deaths with

underlying COD determined No data No data 85%
through standard VA * Philippine Statistics Authority. (August 2021). Philippines’ Response to the UNESCAP Mid-Term Questionnaire 2020.
** Philippine Statistics Authority. (January 31, 2022). Registered Deaths in the Philippines, 2020. https://psa.gov.ph/content/registered-deaths-philippines-
2020#:~:text=In%202020%2C%20a%20total%20of,per%201%2C000%20population%20in%202020.
What we have done
so far for MCCOD?
 1. Trained physicians on
MCCOD since 2015

2. Developed
Capacity handbook and other
learning tools on
Building MCCOD for Filipino
physicians
 4. MCCOD Instructional Design

● Developed eLearning platform for

Capacity MCCOD which can be accessed
through the DOH Academy
Building ● Has MOA with 50% of medical
colleges on inclusion of MCCOD
in the medical curriculum, and we
target 100% by 2023
 ● Advocated to medical associations
and societies the importance of
MCCOD
● Discussed with the Medical Board
of PRC the inclusion of MCCOD in
the table of requirements

Advocacy
 Issued:
● Administrative Order 2020-0008 or
the Rules on MCCOD

● Department Circular
No. 2022-0293 or
the Interim
Guidelines on the
Policy Assessment of
MCCOD in Health
Review and Facilities

Formulation
What we did good in
MCCOD
 Collaboration and support among major
stakeholders: DOH, PSA, NGAs, local health units,
medical schools, medical specialty societies and
the Professional Regulation Commission
Technical assistance of international partners i.e.
Bloomberg, WHO, and World Bank

UN ESCAP
 Availability of new technological
Iris, innovations in CRVS
Anaconda,
Verbal
Autopsy
…And the COVID-19 lockdown forced online learning
and the MCCOD eLearning module was ready
How to ramp-up our
MCCOD journey?
● Get high level political commitment for CRVS from the senators,
and congress to push for legislation and to increase investments
in CRVS
● Maximise use of ICT to ensure operational efficiency
● Vital statistics should be the major source of data for the
Philippine Development Plan and for national indicators in 5 years
or less
● Create a demand for better quality vital statistics from the public.
● Get international partners in our last mile journey
● Ramp-up the advocacy on CRVS
We welcome suggestions and
recommendations to ramp-up our last mile
journey.

Please go to bit.ly/mentisession3
Thank you.