Aren’t you double-counting DALYs here? Imagine 2 charities:
Charity 1 prevents Malaria deaths in children. Charity 2 pays for the costs of living of poor people.
If Charity 1 prevents a Malaria death and then Charity 2 pays for the costs of living of the saved person, each will count each year as a DALY win per x$ donated. But they can’t both claim full credit.
Great question. Yes, you’d be double counting in this case. The DALY is not perfect, and should always be seen as just a general rough guide, and never be the sole influence for making decisions. As they say, all models are wrong, but some are useful :)
Malaria nets are unpleasant to sleep under, but it’s much better than getting malaria. I’m not aware of any studies that measure how much of a reduction in quality of life they result in, but I imagine the effect to be quite small.
Charity 1 prevents Malaria deaths in children. Charity 2 pays for the costs of living of poor people.
If Charity 1 prevents a Malaria death and then Charity 2 pays for the costs of living of the saved person, each will count each year as a DALY win per x$ donated. But they can’t both claim full credit.
Great question. Yes, you’d be double counting in this case. The DALY is not perfect, and should always be seen as just a general rough guide, and never be the sole influence for making decisions. As they say, all models are wrong, but some are useful :)
Malaria nets are unpleasant to sleep under, but it’s much better than getting malaria. I’m not aware of any studies that measure how much of a reduction in quality of life they result in, but I imagine the effect to be quite small.