Aglet

Triage a Report Ratio Denominator

Ratio triage starts by asking who or what is eligible for the denominator. Compare numerator rows, denominator rows, filters, and displayed wording in a small fixture with ineligible cases. Preserve the formula and period state because a rate can change when only the population definition changes.

Establish what is happening

  1. Name both populations

    Write the event or value counted in the numerator and the people, entities, or periods eligible for the denominator. Record exclusions, duplicate memberships, and zero-eligible cases. Keep a fixture where the same numerator produces different rates under two reasonable denominators.

  2. Trace formula inputs

    Follow rows through filters, joins, eligibility tests, grouping, and arithmetic. Compare numerator, denominator, ratio, rounding, and label at each stage. Mark where an excluded row enters or an eligible row disappears, and preserve the filter values that produced the displayed rate.

  3. Bound the affected reports

    List cards, charts, tables, exports, alerts, and period comparisons using the ratio. Separate rates with explicit denominator definitions from those inheriting a shared measure. Ask the metric owner to resolve whether the report uses all rows, eligible rows, or completed cases.

What to carry forward

Triage is complete when numerator, denominator, eligibility rule, first divergent stage, affected surfaces, and metric owner are recorded. Keep the result provisional when the report label permits several populations or the zero-denominator outcome is not defined.

Technical background: Metabase documentation.

Keep the decision with the work.

Use a Work Item in Aglet to record the problem, the evidence you have, and the next decision. Add an owner and priority, then keep updates in the discussion so the next person can follow the reasoning.

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