Modelling Non-Normal Neonatal Weight Data to Estimate Mortality Rate of Newborn Babies

Neonatal Mortality Rate (NMR) can be defined as the number of newborn deaths’ aged 0 to 28 days. The most significant factor influenced NMR is low birth weight of newborn babies approximately 48%, followed by asphyxia 37% and sepsis 32.5%. This paper deploys a Burr XII distribution to model the Non-Normal Neonatal Weight data. The parameters of the fitted Burr XII distribution are estimated using Simulated Annealing (SA) method. The mortality rate defined as the proportion of newborn with weight out side the accepted weight specification limits is then estimated using the fitted Burr XII distribution. The efficacy of the model is assessed by comparing the estimated mortality rate based on the fitted distribution with the actual mortality rate obtained from the data. The results indicate that the Bur XII distribution provides an estimate of Mortality rate which is very close to the actual mortality rate. .