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Death Registration
Bolivia
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Bolivia
Death Registration
Declaration and Notification
Declaration and Notification
Informants
Who is designated as the primary informant for natural deaths that occur in a health facility?
Unclear
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
The informant is the person who reports to the local registrar the occurrence of a vital event within the prescribed time limit. The law should establish, clearly and unequivocally, one person primarily responsible for providing the information needed for death registration to the civil registrar. The law may designate alternative informants and establish the order in which each of them must assume his or her responsibilities. For natural deaths occurring in health facilities, the head of the health facility or other health staff should be primary informant. Alternative informants, in order of priority, are: the nearest relative/next of kin or any adult with knowledge of the facts. Additionally, the legislation should explicitly state what type of facility is considered a “health facility” for purposes of being an informant.
The law does not clearly designate a single primary informant for deaths occurring in health facilities, as recommended by international guidelines. However, Article 48 of Supreme Decree No. 24247 of March 7, 1999, establishes that the Civil Registry Officer records the death upon presentation of the medical certificate attesting to the death, which implies that the physician is the person providing the information when the death occurs within a health facility. In places where no physician is available, the article states that the Civil Registry Officer must verify the death.
Who is designated primary informant for natural deaths occurring outside a health facility?
Unclear
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
In the case of death outside health facility but under medical supervision, the most effective approach is to designate the health professional as primary informant. Alternative informants, in order of priority, are: nearest relative, or any other adult having knowledge of the facts.
The law does not distinguish between deaths inside and outside of health facilities. Article 48 of Supreme Decree No. 24247 of March 7, 1999, establishes that the Civil Registry Officer records the death upon presentation of the medical certificate attesting to the death, which implies that the physician is the person providing the information when the death occurs within a health facility. In places where no physician is available, the article states that the Civil Registry Officer must verify the death.
Who is designated as the primary informant for unnatural or suspicious deaths?
Other
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
To ensure that unnatural and suspicious deaths are registered, legislation should clearly specify who is responsible for reporting the death to the registrar. The primary informant for an unnatural or suspicious death should be an officer of the mediolegal system, regardless of whether the death occurred with or without medical supervision.
Such officers may include: coroners, medical examiners, police or other medicolegal officers. Responsibility should not be placed on the family, as that may result in the death not being declared to the registrar.
According to Article 48 of Supreme Decree No. 24247 of March 7, 1999, when a body is found and it is impossible to identify it, the death is registered upon a judicial order, and in the absence of a judge, with authorization from the administrative, military, or ecclesiastical authority. This provision implies that, in cases of unnatural or suspicious deaths, the judge is the primary informant responsible for authorizing the registration, while the administrative, military, or ecclesiastical authority assumes this role when there is no judge in the jurisdiction. The law, however, does not establish a broader medicolegal framework on informants.
What is the role of the health sector in death registration for natural deaths occurring in health facilities?
Issuing of evidence of death, death record or equivalent document
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
When a death occurs in a healthcare facility,designating the head of the health facility as the informant, is the most effective way of ensuring that all deaths in health facilities are registered in a timely and accurate manner. In some countries the health facility performs a notification function, collecting relevant information about the death and passing it to the civil registrar. In that situation, the informant (usually the nearest relative) still needs to declare the death to the civil registrar in order for the death to be registered. When the health facility is the notifer, the health facility will usually be required to provide the family with some form of evidence or record of the death to be used by the informant for registration. In some countries, the health sector is neither informant nor notifier, but instead simply issues a document to the family that serves as proof of the death. Finally in some countries, specified health staff may be designated as registrars or assigned some registrar functions, which helps bring registration closer to the people.
For information on the role of health facilities in determining cause of death and completing medical certificates of cause of death, see the "Cause of Death" topic.
The doctor is required to issue a medical certificate of the cause of death when the patient dies from the illness for which he or she was being treated.
What is the role of the health sector in death registration for natural deaths occurring outside health facilities?
Issuing evidence of death or other equivalent document
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
The health sector can play an important role in notifying vital events, such as deaths, that occur outside health facilities where health workers attend patients and their families in the community. Countries may designate medical officers or community health workers as informants for deaths that occur in the community. Or Alternatively, the health care worker may notify the civil registrar of the facts of death, but the nearest relative still needs to register declare the death to the civil registrar in for the death to be registered. Finally, in some countries health workers may only provide a document, such as a notice of death, to the nearest relative as official evidence of the death, which the informant submits when declaring the death.
Medical attendant is designated as the person to issue the medical certificate of the cause of death. If death occurs outside of health facilities, a doctor of the closest facility is designated to issue the certification
What role do local leaders or local authorities have in the registration process for deaths that occur in the community?
Yes
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
In some countries, there may be remote locations where the health system is not readily accessible. In such instances, responsibility may be assigned to a local leader to act of informant, or to notify the registrar of the fact of death (but not cause of death). If a local leader is the informant, the family may be required to provide additional information to the registrar in order to register the death. In some instances, a local leader, such as a village chief, may act as a facilitiator, helping the family member (the informant) complete the death registration application and submitting this form to the local civil registrar.
The death is registered at the request of the relatives of the deceased, or in the absence of relatives, by neighbors, or by the administrative, military or ecclesiastical authority of the place of death.
The Civil Registry Officer carries out the registration in view of the medical certificate proving the death.
In places where death occurs outside of medical supervision professional, the Civil Registry Officer, is required to confirm the event of death. Often, when there is no medical supervision during death, as is the case in some rural areas, the certificate must be completed by non-medical health personnel or by a local authority if there is no health personnel available.
Does the law require that funeral, burial, and cremation services share records with civil registrar?
In countries where death registration is not a precondition for issuing a permit to dispose of bodies, custodians of funeral facilities, crematoriums and burial sites should be required to maintain a record of all deaths and to notify the civil registrar
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
In countries where death registration is not a precondition for issuing a permit to dispose of bodies, custodians of funeral facilities, crematoriums and burial sites may be required to maintain a record of all deaths and to report the deaths to the civil registrar, which would alert the registrar of fact of death when death has not been registered.
Funeral, burial and cremation service providers do not share their records with the civil registry secretary, they are only required to notify the municipal autonomous governments.
