Errors Detected in Death Certificates issued in a Medical College of Nepal

Abstract

Introduction
Death certificate is a medico-legal document required for formulating policies for improving the healthcare system of any nation. Occurrence of errors while filling up these documents has negatively affected on reliability and validity of these pivotal documents.
Methods
This was a cross-sectional study conducted at Gandaki Medical College (GMC), Pokhara. The mortality file records of ICU and ER patients from14th April 2019 to 14th April 2022 were collected. Errors in the death certificates were noted in proforma. The data was entered in Microsoft Excel and further analysis was done by SPSS 16.0. 
Results
A total of 139 death certificates were assessed. The occurrence of errors in death certificates was 97.84% (136/139) with the majority of errors i.e.; 82% (112/136) was noted in the immediate cause of death (ICOD) section of the death certificate followed by 79% (108 out of 136) of errors were noted in other significant conditions (OSC) and 74% (101/136) error was noted in the underlying cause of death (UCOD) section. The most frequent error was ‘not reporting the time interval from onset to death’, observed in 99.3% (138/139) of cases followed by the ‘use of abbreviations’ when certifying the cause of death in 64% (89/139) of death certificates.
Conclusion
The findings of this study highlight the need for improved education and training of doctors to ensure accurate documentation of death certificates. Regular training programs and workshops may ultimately contribute to improved healthcare policy formulation and decision making based on these findings.