Writing Cause-of-Death Statements
Training
Improving Cause-of-Death Reporting
This training will help you better understand why it is important to accurately document the cause of death on the death certificate and how to use your best medical judgment to determine accurate information. The training will discuss how cause of death information is used, how to complete the death certificate, when to refer cases to the coroner or medical examiner, and where to find additional information.
The training will discuss the importance of cause-of-death reporting. What a physician writes in the certificate’s ‘cause-of-death’ section is as important to public health practitioners as what a physician writes in a patient’s medical chart is to patient care. Cause-of-death information is used to detect trends, such as those listed on this screen, that determine public health programs and health care funding allocations. Aside from the public health significance, it is part of a permanent legal record. Physicians must use their best medical judgment to determine the cause-of-death.
The ICD-10 training tool is an interactive self training that will allow you to understand and use ICD-10. User specific paths include a fast track for e.g. managers, and an in depth training for coders. The tool contains sections on: ICD coding; certification of death; ethics and confidentiality; quality assurance; statistical presentation; rules for mortality and morbidity coding; and basic medical knowledge.
White Papers
- Possible Solutions to Common Problems in Death Certification
- Papers from the National Association of Medical Examiners (NAME)
Reference Sheets
- Instructions for Completing the Cause-of-Death Section of the Death Certificate [PDF – 76 KB]
- Instructions for Completing the Cause-of-Death Section of the Death Certificate for Injury and Poisoning [PDF – 82 KB]
Publications
- State Definitions and Reporting Requirements for Live Births, Fetal Deaths, and Induced Terminations of Pregnancy
- The Autopsy, Medicine, and Mortality Statistics [PDF – 1 MB]
Handbooks
- Physicians’ Handbook on Medical Certification of Death (2003 Revision) [PDF – 1.2 MB]
- Medical Examiners’ and Coroners’ Handbook on Death Registration and Fetal Death Reporting (2003 Revision) [PDF – 2.9 MB]
- Funeral Directors’ Handbook on Death Registration and Fetal Death Reporting (2003 Revision) [PDF – 2.9 MB]
- Hospitals’ and Physicians’ Handbook on Birth Registration and Fetal Death Reporting [PDF – 7.7 MB]
- Handbook on the Reporting of Induced Termination of Pregnancy (Reprinted/revised 1997) [PDF – 2.6 MB]
- Guidelines for Reporting Occupation and Industry on Death Certificates
Special Guidelines
Presentations
- Page last reviewed: August 30, 2017
- Page last updated: August 30, 2017
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