INDICATORS

2.3. Major international data sources
The most relevant international data sources are Eurostat database, OECD Health Data
and the WHO Health for All database.
Eurostat database (www.epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/): As for all Eurostat activities,
work is carried out within the European Statistical System. In the area of public health
statistics, main partners in the Member States and associated countries are the National
Statistical Offices, Ministries of Health and Public Health Institutes as the providers
of official statistics on public health. Annual planning and strategic decisions are made
with the Member States at the yearly meeting of the Working Group on Public Health
Statistics. Eurostat’s work in the area of Public Health statistics is structured according
to four main topics:
• Causes of Death statistics
• Health Care statistics
• Health Interview Surveys
• Diagnosis-specific morbidity statistics
The current state of the different areas is briefly summarised below.
1. Causes of Death statistics – COD: Eurostat disseminates COD statistics according
to a shortlist of 65 causes (“Causes of death – European shortlist”, based on the ICD –
International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, WHO).
Data are available at national and regional level (NUTS 2) for total number, crude death
rates (CDRs) and standardised death rates (SDRs), broken down by age groups and
by sex. While dissemination is according to the European shortlist of 65 causes, more
detailed data (ICD-10 3-digit level) are available for most countries on request.
2. Health Care statistics – CARE (expenditure and non-expenditure data): Eurostat
recently started collecting data on health care expenditure, based on the System of
Health Accounts (SHA). In 2005 a Joint Questionnaire was created in co-operation
with the OECD and WHO Headquarters, using the International Classification for
Health Accounts (ICHA) as presented in the SHA Manual, supplemented with some
classifications developed in the Guide to Producing National Health Accounts by the
WHO. The Joint Questionnaire has reduced the burden of enquiry of the data producers,
because data are only supplied once to all the international organisations of which the
country is a member. A common effort of Eurostat, the OECD and the WHO in this
area will serve additionally as a platform for harmonising institutional approaches and
enhancing further SHA development. The aim of this joint data collection is to supply
a consistent and comparable picture of health care system expenditure of countries,
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