Epidemiology of drowning deaths in the Philippines, 1980 to 2011

Authors

  • Rammell Eric Martinez Office of the WHO Representative in the Philippines, Sta. Cruz, Manila, Philippines
  • John Juliard Go Office of the WHO Representative in the Philippines, Sta. Cruz, Manila, Philippines
  • Jonathan Guevarra Department of Health Promotion and Education, College of Public Health, University of the Philippines, Manila, Philippines

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5365/wpsar.2016.7.2.005

Abstract

Drowning kills 372 000 people yearly worldwide and is a serious public health issue in the Philippines. This study aims to determine if the drowning death rates in the Philippine Health Statistics (PHS) reports from 1980 to 2011 were underestimated. A retrospective descriptive study was conducted to describe the trend of deaths caused by drowning in the Philippines from official and unofficial sources in the period 1980 to 2011. Information about deaths related to cataclysmic causes, particularly victims of storms and floods, and maritime accidents in the Philippines during the study period were reviewed and compared with the PHS drowning death data.

An average of 2496 deaths per year caused by drowning were recorded in the PHS reports from 1980 to 2011 (range 671–3656). The average death rate was 3.5/100 000 population (range 1.3–4.7). An average of 4196 drowning deaths were recorded from 1980 to 2011 (range 1220 to 8788) when catacylsmic events and maritime accidents were combined with PHS data. The average death rate was 6/100 000 population (range 2.5–14.2).

Our results showed that on average there were 1700 more drowning deaths per year when deaths caused by cataclysms and maritime accidents were added to the PHS data. This illustrated that drowning deaths were underestimated in the official surveillance data. Passive surveillance and irregular data management are contributing to underestimation of drowning in the Philippines. Additionally, deaths due to flooding, storms and maritime accidents are not counted as drowning deaths, which further contributes to the underestimation. Surveillance of drowning data can be improved using more precise case definitions and a multisectoral approach.

Author Biography

Rammell Eric Martinez, Office of the WHO Representative in the Philippines, Sta. Cruz, Manila, Philippines

Violence and Injury Prevention, Drowning Prevention

Short-term Consultant

Downloads

Published

08-11-2016

How to Cite

1.
Martinez RE, Go JJ, Guevarra J. Epidemiology of drowning deaths in the Philippines, 1980 to 2011. Western Pac Surveill Response J [Internet]. 2016 Nov. 8 [cited 2026 Apr. 8];7(4). Available from: https://ojs.wpro.who.int/ojs/index.php/wpsar/article/view/448

Issue

Vol. 7 No. 4 (2016): October – December

Section

Surveillance Report

License

You are free to:

  • Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format for any purpose, even commercially.
  • Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.
  • The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.

Under the following terms:

  • Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
  • No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.

Notices:

When the Licensor is an intergovernmental organization, disputes will be resolved by mediation and arbitration unless otherwise agreed.

You do not have to comply with the license for elements of the material in the public domain or where your use is permitted by an applicable exception or limitation.

No warranties are given. The license may not give you all of the permissions necessary for your intended use. For example, other rights such as publicity, privacy, or moral rights may limit how you use the material.