A new tool for coding and selecting the cause of death: adapting Iris software for using in Brazil

• Grant number: 13/09758-3
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: September 01, 2013
• End date: August 31, 2015
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Collective Health - Epidemiology
• Principal Investigator: Cassia Maria Buchalla
• Grantee: Cassia Maria Buchalla
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Saúde Pública (FSP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated researchers: Renata Cristófani Martins

Abstract

Mortality data are used for planning, assessment of assistance and medical researches. The quality of this information depends on a number of factors from the accuracy of the doctor´s notification to the knowledge of the professional who will code and select the underlying cause of death (UC). Automation of this process is a way to reduce errors.This project aimed to prepare Iris, software that automatically code and select the UC, for use in Brazil. Iris´s instruction follows the World Health Organization for coding and selecting the UC. It is simple, friendly and has been adopted by an increasing number of countries. Iris is also language independent which is another advantage. The only condition for its use is a dictionary for medical terms and respective ICD-10 codes. In order to prepare a dictionary of medical terms in Portuguese we will aggregate all files available from ICD-10 volumes 1 and 3, and those from death certificates from the five regions of the country. We expect to get a great variability of the terminology of causes of death used in this country.Some States and City Departments of Health from all five regions will participate providing death certificates in order to warranty the variability. Death certificates will be scanned, without the personal identity, and send to the research team to be coded by Iris. When a term could not be coded, it will be included in the dictionary in as many ways as it can be write in Portuguese. Data collection will last 12 months after what we expect to have the majority of terms used in Brazil included. This will allow Iris software to be tested as a tool for the mortality system in any state of this country. (AU)