Report of the Home Office review of death certification / Home Office.

  • Great Britain. Home Office.
Date:
2001
Catalogue details

Licence: Open Government Licence

Credit: Report of the Home Office review of death certification / Home Office. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    10/62
    9.1 es we, 9.4 ope 10 Option 1: Sharpen up the existing procedures The changes proposed under this option were intended to be achievable without amendment to primary legislation or incurring significant additional cost. This option was designed simply to improve death certification by tidying and sharpening up the existing procedures; it was also intended that the measures could be put into effect without undue delay. Option 1 proposed changes such as: e enlarging the information included on the medical certificate of the cause of death e providing a code of practice which might, for instance, include non-statutory definitions of some of the terms (such as ‘last illness’) which have proved contentious e encouraging consultation of medical records before issue of the medical certificate of cause of death revising the wording of certain of the certificates, such as Forms A, B and Ox offering training, on a voluntary basis, for those who currently receive no instruction in death certification. In the main, respondents accepted that the proposals included in this option could be simple, cheap, achievable, valid and easily put into place. However, although one or two respondents considered that their introduction might be of some value, particularly clarification of the problematic terminology of death certification legislation (eg definitions of ‘attended’ or ‘last illness’), most agreed that they would offer little advance on current practice. The general view was that significant progress could not be achieved without necessitating changes to the primary legislation. Whether the proposed measures would necessarily be cheap to implement was also questioned. The changes that could be made to the medical certificate of cause or death without legislation are limited and it was suggested that, in the absence of statutory changes, a significant educational and persuasive effort could be required to bring about the adoption of new practices. Much effort had recently been expended on seeking to improve completion of certificates of the medical cause of death, but the results were by no means uniformly successful. In view of the apparent ease and speed of introduction of the package of changes encompassed in Option 1, a number of respondents suggested that such changes might form the first stage to a more fundamental revision of death certification. In particular, the Coroners’ Society pointed to these proposals as being of immediate appeal and quick to implement. Option 2: Change and improve procedures within the existing framework