Dear Trefor
This is not a recent tale but it's a cautionary saga which bears repetition
on the appropriate use of coded data.
Once upon a time there was no Read code for 'Tired all the time' - an
omission which was only corrected a couple of years after the 'no cost
option' was initiated in 1988.
At the same time it was still possible, on some systems, to edit the rubric
associated with a particular code, potentially to mean something entirely
different.
One senior partner, fed up with not being able to describe his patients as
'Tired all the time' - a condition with a high prevalence in most areas - so
he pulled down the code for 'Tattoo' and simply cut off the 'oo' at the end.
It was some time later that a Read code analysis of their data suggested an
abnormally high proportion of their patients with tattoos.
Robert
-----Original Message-----
From: GP-UK [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Trefor Roscoe
As per usual I am doing my annual lecture to the first year students on
health informatics next week.
Anyone have any anecdotes or interesting things that have happened in
the last couple of years to use to liven up the lectuer.
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