Question

Calculate the Standardised Death Rate (SDR) for two towns and determine which town is healthier based on a provided age-distribution table.

Hint:

SDR removes age bias. Lower SDR = Healthier population.

Answer 1

Concept: The Standardised Death Rate (SDR) is used to compare mortality between populations with different age structures. It removes the effect of age distribution by applying a standard population.
Formula: \[ \text{SDR} = \frac{\text{Total expected deaths}}{\text{Total standard population}} \times 1000 \] Where,

Expected deaths = Age-specific death rate $\times$ Standard population in that age group

Step-by-Step Method:

Step 1: Obtain age-specific death rates for each town: \[ \text{Age-specific death rate} = \frac{\text{Deaths in age group}}{\text{Population in age group}} \]

Step 2: Multiply each age-specific rate by the standard population of the same age group: \[ \text{Expected deaths} = \text{Rate} \times \text{Standard population} \]

Step 3: Add expected deaths across all age groups: \[ \text{Total expected deaths} = \sum (\text{Expected deaths}) \]

Step 4: Compute SDR: \[ \text{SDR} = \frac{\text{Total expected deaths}}{\text{Total standard population}} \times 1000 \]
Comparison of Towns:

Calculate SDR separately for both towns
The town with the
lower SDR is considered healthier

Conclusion: After computing SDR for both towns using the given table:

Lower SDR $\Rightarrow$ Better health conditions
Higher SDR $\Rightarrow$ Poorer health conditions