Question

What is the purpose of external cause codes?

A) To act as the primary diagnosis
B) To describe well-child visits
C) To describe poisonings
D) To describe how an accident occurred
E) To describe poisonings, accidents, and other causes of injury and morbidity

Answer 1

The purpose of external cause codes is to provide detailed information about the circumstances of injuries, poisonings, and other causes of morbidity, supplementing the primary diagnosis. They are essential for health-care management, documentation, and statistical analysis.

Step-by-step explanation:

The purpose of external cause codes is to describe poisonings, accidents, and other causes of injury and morbidity. External cause codes are part of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) system and they are not intended to be the primary diagnosis,which is the condition that is chiefly responsible for the patient's visit to the healthcare provider.

Rather, these codes provide supplementary information that allows for a more comprehensive picture of the circumstances surrounding an injury or health event. They help in the classification and analysis of morbidity data, providing valuable details to healthcare providers, epidemiologists, and public health officials. For instance, they can describe the mechanism of an accident, the intent (accidental or intentional), and the place where the event occurred. Additionally, they are crucial in health-care management systems for verifying that treatments and laboratory work are appropriate for the specific injuries or health issues.

In clinical practice, you would likely find ICD codes noted in patients' medical records and on laboratory test requisitions, as they are essential for documenting diagnoses and justifying medical services for insurance claims and statistical purposes.