ICD-10 mortality coding and the NCIS: a comparative study.

The collection and utilisation of mortality data are often hindered by limited access to contextual details of the circumstances surrounding fatal incidents. The National Coroners Information System (NCIS) can provide researchers with access to such information. The NCIS search capabilities have been enhanced by the inclusion of data supplied by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), specifically the ICD-10 Cause of Death code set. A comparative study was conducted to identify consistencies and differences between ABS ICD-10 codes and those that could be generated by utilising the full NCIS record. Discrepancies between the two sets of codes were detected in over 50% of cases, which highlighted the importance of access to complete and timely documentation in the assignment of accurate and detailed cause of death codes.