Interaction between clinicians and clinical coders

The need for accurate decisions on principal diagnosis and code allocation has led to collaboration between clinical coders and clinicians to interpret the documentation in the clinical record and to come to an agreed decision on appropriate codes for episodes of care.

Clinicans have made major contributions to the structure and content of the new Australian disease and procedure classifications through a network of 21 Clinical Coding and Classification Groups (CCCG), which advise both the NCCH and the Australian Casemix Clinical Committee (ACCC) on issues relating to coding and casemix refinement. Many additions to the WHO ICD-10 were made as a result of mapping between ICD-9-CM and ICD-10 to ensure that specificity and new Australian codes introduced to ICD-9-CM were replicated in ICD-10-AM. Examples of notable improvements in ICD-10-AM compared with ICD-9-CM

To promote clinician-coder communication, the NCCH has been funded by the ACCC to publish a series of specialty booklets on coding and casemix. A series of 21 booklets on different clinical topics is planned, of which a third is already available. Detailed information of interest to clinicians and epidemiologists about changes in ICD-10-AM is currently being prepared by the NCCH and will be available on the NCCH internet homepage.⁶ The NCCH also has an education function in keeping clinical coders abreast of annual updates to the coding system and the Australian Coding Standards.⁵ It will play a major role in educating clinical coders in ICD-10-AM. The NCCH's homepage⁶ is regularly updated and has links to relevant Australian and overseas organisations.