* Recording a stillbirth

[AdrianBruce]

Any ideas how best to record a stillbirth in FH, without creating spurious events?

Just as a reminder, such a child is not born alive (so is a birth event a spurious event?). If I don't create a birth, does that risk getting children out of order? Maybe if I create a dated stillbirth event? (Some at least of the reports etc do show the child in the place I've moved them to in the family).

As they were never alive, so they cannot die, suggesting it is inappropriate to create a death event - but if I've created a birth event (despite what I suggested above), then FH will think the person still alive in later years.

Clearly I could create a birth and death event - it's just that I prefer not to create artificial events and values.

This is a 1903 American record - just to confuse matters further, the child is in a birth register and has a death certificate, but the DC clearly says "Stillbirth".

[tatewise]

Adrian, use a standard Birth Event and set the Age to Stillborn which is standard GEDCOM.
I think there will need to be a Death Event coincident with the birth and associated with the Death Certificate.
Alternatively, there will need to be a Burial Event.
It is a delicate situation, but the child was alive prior to birth, so a death event is rational.

[AdrianBruce]

Ah yes - the Age-at-event tag. I'd forgotten that - since I never use it - so no surprise that I didn't know about the Stillborn qualifier. Being standard GEDCOM, things should work OK from that.

And I've just seen that the DC has burial information for the poor thing, so that should mean I can leave out the Death event with no ill effect (unless I've got any simplistic queries - cross that bridge if I find it, probably by altering the query's criteria).

Thanks Mike.

[mjashby]

From GENUKI and GRO Sources (for England & Wales):

Stillbirth registration was introduced on 1 July 1927 to help protect infant life, provide a valuable source of statistical information and to give parents the opportunity to have their child officially acknowledged. A stillborn child is a child born after the 24th week of pregnancy who did not breathe or show any other signs of life. When a child is stillborn the midwife or doctor will issue a medical certificate of stillbirth which will be used to register the stillbirth.

When stillbirth registration was introduced the the age limit was the end of the 28th week of pregnancy, not the 24th (as it is now). This is a relatively recent change following the greatly increased survival rates of premature babies.

Current GRO policy on obtaining stillbirth certificates: "Due to the sensitive nature of stillbirth registrations, the procedure for ordering a certificate of the entry differs from other types of certificates. We will only send out the application form after we have been contacted by phone or in writing by the mother or father (if he is named on the certificate). In cases where the parents are deceased, a brother or sister can apply if they can provide their parents' dates of death."

https://www.gov.uk/register-stillbirth

[AdrianBruce]

And knowing the sensitive way that the GRO treats these, I was quite bemused to find the death certificate that started all this off, in with the normal Massachusetts death certificates. Doesn't mean they still treat it that way, of course.