Table 1

Is this an emergency? [24]

Agency
Assumed baseline
Emergency threshold

Centres for Disease Control, Medecins Sans Frontiers Epicentre
Fixed at:
CMR: 0.5 per 10,000 per day
Under 5 MR: 1 per 10,000 per day
Emergency if:
CMR: >1 per 10,000 per day
Under 5 MR: >2 per 10,000 per day

UNHCR
Fixed at:
CMR: 0.5 per 10,000 per day
Under 5 MR: 1 per 10,000 per day
Definitions*:
CMR: >1 per 10,000 per day 'very serious'
CMR: >2 per 10,000 per day 'out of control'
CMR: >5 per 10,000 per day 'major catastrophe'
* Double each count for <5 MR

Sphere project
Context specific CMR (<5 MR)
Sub-Saharan Africa: 0.44 (1.14)
Latin America: 0.16 (0.19)
South Asia: 0.25 (0.59)
Eastern Europe, Former Soviet Union: 0.30 (0.20)
Emergency if: CMR (<5 MR)
Sub-Saharan Africa: 0.9 (2.3)
Latin America: 0.3 (0.4)
South Asia: 0.5 (1.2)
Eastern Europe, Former Soviet Union: 0.6 (0.4)

Definitions for emergency status thresholds

Mills et al. Conflict and Health 2008 2:9   doi:10.1186/1752-1505-2-9