Abstract
The Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) are a major source for many demographic and health indicators in developing countries. Although these indicators are well defined in the literature, using survey data to calculate some of these indicators has never been an easy task for data users. This paper presents the DHS.rates software, a user-friendly R package developed to calculate fertility indicators, such as the total fertility rate, general fertility rate, and age-specific fertility rates, and childhood mortality indicators, such as the neonatal mortality rate, post-neonatal mortality rate, infant mortality rate, child mortality rate, and under-5 mortality rate, from the DHS data. The package allows for national and subnational indicators. In addition, the package calculates sampling error indicators such as standard error, design effect, relative standard error, and confidence interval for each demographic indicator. The package can also be used to calculate the same indicators from other population surveys such as the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS).
Highlights
For the last 35 years, the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) Program has conducted more than 300 national surveys in more than 90 countries in Africa, Asia, and South America
This paper aims to: 1) introduce readers to the DHS.rates R package; 2) demonstrate how the package can be used to calculate fertility and childhood mortality rates and their sampling error indicators based on the DHS surveys; and 3) explain how the package can be used with other surveys
In this paper we introduced the DHS.rates R package
Summary
For the last 35 years, the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) Program has conducted more than 300 national surveys in more than 90 countries in Africa, Asia, and South America. The DHS surveys are based on nationally representative samples that allow for national and regional estimates. Standard DHS surveys are designed to provide information about fertility, family planning, maternal and child health, and childhood mortality levels. Most of the DHS surveys follow a two-stage sampling design, where census Enumeration Areas (EAs) are selected in the first stage as Primary Sampling Units (PSUs). A sample of households is selected from each selected PSU. All women age 15–49 who slept in the household the night before the survey are eligible to complete a questionnaire designed for women. In all households or in a subsample, all men of reproductive age (typically 15–49, 15–54, or 15–59) might be eligible to complete a questionnaire designed for men
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