Answering FAQs: Part 3

What can we tell from international comparisons? What is the ‘real’ death toll?

To help the Royal Statistical Society, I wrote answers to frequently asked questions about COVID-19.

Given my frequent posts on this topic, the answers were similar to words already written. The main constraint was a limit of 400 words.

What can we tell from international comparisons?

International comparisons are challenging.

There is no standard definition of a ‘COVID-19 death’. Countries count these figures in different ways.

Before mid-August, there were different definitions in the United Kingdom:

• England (Public Health England): confirmed deaths in all settings. The person has a positive test result for SARS-CoV-2.
• Wales (Public Health Wales): deaths in Welsh hospitals and care homes. The deceased person must have tested positive for the virus. A clinician must suspect the COVID-19 disease was a causative factor in the death.
• Scotland (Public Health Scotland): confirmed deaths in all places. The person must have died within 28 days of their first positive test result. The Public Health Agency in Northern Ireland also uses this definition.

After a review by Public Health England, the changed measure uses the 28-day cut-off.