Death certification: an audit of practice entering the 21st century

Journal of Clinical Pathology
B Swift, K West

Abstract

Death certification, a legal duty of doctors, continues to be poorly performed despite Royal College recommendations and increased education at an undergraduate level. Therefore, the current performance of certifying doctors was audited within a large teaching hospital entering the new century. A total of 1000 completed certificate counterfoils were examined retrospectively for appropriateness of completion and the ability to construct a logical cause of death cascade. Only 55% of certificates were completed to a minimally accepted standard, and many of these failed to provide relevant information to allow adequate ICD-10 coding. Nearly 10% were completed to a poor standard, being illogical or inappropriately completed. The results show no improvement in the state of certification. Possible interventions to improve outcomes are discussed; however, in light of a recent high profile legal case a current Home Office review of death certification may suggest the passing of statutory law to ensure accurate completion.

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Citations

Apr 22, 2010·Occupational Medicine·D CoggonK T Palmer
Sep 10, 2002·BMJ : British Medical Journal·Benjamin Swift
Jul 2, 2003·Journal of Clinical Pathology·J L Burton, J C E Underwood
Jun 25, 2010·Occupational and Environmental Medicine·David CoggonKeith T Palmer
Oct 19, 2004·BMC Public Health·Vendhan Gajalakshmi, Richard Peto
Jun 7, 2013·BMC Health Services Research·Ahmed Suleman HaqueJavaid Ahmed Khan
Aug 2, 2013·Journal of Tropical Pediatrics·Neeraj GuptaJ S Thakur
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Apr 17, 2007·Gaceta sanitaria·Beatriz Pérez-GómezGonzalo López-Abente
Nov 20, 2012·Acta Obstetricia Et Gynecologica Scandinavica·Annika EsscherBirgitta Essën
Mar 16, 2016·Occupational and Environmental Medicine·E Clare HarrisDavid Coggon
Sep 13, 2017·Occupational Medicine·E Clare HarrisDavid Coggon
Nov 17, 2017·Journal of Forensic Sciences·Leah RuizCraig Hemmens
Oct 13, 2004·The International Journal of Eating Disorders·Anne Muir, Robert L Palmer
Jan 25, 2020·The American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology·Kimberly A WoodMitchell L Weinberg
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May 15, 2018·Death Studies·Khaldoon Aljerian
May 11, 2021·Journal of Alzheimer's Disease : JAD·Michael WallerAnnette J Dobson

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