Week 1:Introduction session(18 November 2025)¶
The session began with our tutor introducing the overall program and providing an overview of data science. He highlighted the importance and practical applications of tools such as JupyterLab and GitLab, helping us understand how these platforms support efficient data analysis and project management. Later in the session, he demonstrated the use of these tools through a few sample datasets. By walking us through each step, he made it easier for us to grasp how data is processed, visualized, and interpreted, giving us a clearer understanding of real-world data science workflows.
The dataset I liked the most from my tutor’s explanation¶
Data:Florence Nightingale Changed Data Visualization Forever¶
Summary:Florence Nightingale’s Coxcomb Diagram¶
This image shows Florence Nightingale’s Coxcomb Diagram, also called the rose diagram or polar area chart, which she created to illustrate the causes of mortality among British soldiers during the Crimean War. The chart is divided into monthly wedges, with the size of each wedge representing the number of deaths for that month. Color-coded sections distinguish causes of death: large blue areas indicate deaths from preventable diseases, red areas show deaths from wounds, and black or gray areas represent deaths from other causes, clearly highlighting that disease was the leading cause of mortality.
By presenting the data in this visually striking format, Nightingale effectively demonstrated the urgent need for sanitary reforms in military hospitals. Her innovative approach not only communicated the severity of the problem in an accessible way but also marked a turning point in data visualization for public health advocacy, influencing how statistics could be used to drive social change.
Assignments: We are asked to choose one dataset¶
Compiled Dataset: Alcohol-Related Deaths / Burden in Bhutan¶
Introduction to the Dataset¶
This dataset presents a compiled summary of alcohol-related deaths and alcohol-attributable health indicators in Bhutan, drawn from publicly available national and international sources. The data combines information from the Ministry of Health’s Annual Health Bulletins, the National Statistics Bureau’s Vital Statistics Reports, WHO country profiles, and published research such as the Bhutan Health Journal. It includes annual figures on alcohol-related liver disease (ALD) deaths, the proportion of deaths attributed to alcohol in health facilities, trends across multiple years, and population-level alcohol-consumption indicators. The dataset is designed to provide a clear picture of how alcohol contributes to mortality and public health challenges in Bhutan, enabling further analysis, comparison, and interpretation for academic or policy-related purposes.
Reports (key, sourced facts)¶
- A 2018 paper summarizing national data reports 190 deaths due to harmful use of alcohol in 2016 (mostly alcohol-related liver disease).Source
- WHO’s SAFER country snapshot (Bhutan) (published July 28, 2025) gives national alcohol consumption and burden indicators and links to data sources (useful for recent indicators and references).Source
- Bhutan’s Vital Statistics Report (2021) and other NSB publications include registered deaths and cause-of-death tables you can download. These are the primary national records to use for per-year cause-of-death counts.Source
- Global databases such as the Global Burden of Disease / GHDx / IHME and WHO Data Portal provide modeled estimates and downloadable cause-of-death datasets (useful if you want comparable, age-standardized estimates).Source
Table summarizing key data points from public sources (Annual Health Bulletin, WHO, national reports):¶
| Year | Metric | Value | Source/ Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Alcohol-related (ALD) deaths | 190 | From the Bhutan Health Journal study.Source |
| 2012 → 2016 | Trend in ALD deaths | ~ 140 (2012) → 190 (2016) | Annual Health Bulletin 2017.Source |
| 2020 | Number of deaths for ALD (in health facilities) | 166 | Vital Statistics Report, BH’s 2021 VSR.Source |
| 2021 | Number of deaths for ALD | 141 | Reported by Ministry of Health.Source |
| 2022 | ALD share of facility-reported mortality | 12.22% | From Annual Health Bulletin 2023, health facility deaths.Source |
| 2022 | Change in ALD incidence (from 2021) | −0.26% decline | Reported in AHB 2023.Source |
| 2023 | ALD deaths | 129 | Reported in media citing AHB.Source |
Trend of Alcohol-Related Deaths (ALD) in Bhutan, 2012–2023(Graphical Visualization)¶
I used online tools to plot a graph for the dataset and then took a screenshot to insert as an image.
Assumptions Based on the Data:¶
- Fluctuating Trend in ALD Deaths: Alcohol-related deaths rose from approximately 140 in 2012 to 190 in 2016, showing an increasing trend during that period. In recent years, however, the numbers have been declining, reaching 129 deaths in 2023.
- Recent Decline: Between 2021 and 2022, ALD incidence slightly decreased by 0.26%, indicating that measures to address alcohol-related health issues may be having a modest impact.
- Significant Contribution to Facility Mortality: In 2022, ALD accounted for 12.22% of facility-reported deaths, highlighting that alcohol-related conditions remain a considerable factor in overall mortality within health facilities.