Field trial of ICD-11

Abstract

The ICD-11 (11th revision of the International Classification of Diseases) field trial is positioned at the final stage of the ICD-11 revision process, and its purpose is to evaluate the applicability, reliability, and usefulness of ICD-11. WHO held the field trial in 2017 with a common protocol, in addition to the pilot test in 2016, in several countries and regions around the world, including Japan. Several field trials said that ICD-11 had finer classification granularity, and that it was possible to describe more detailed disease concepts than ICD-10. On the other hand, they showed the necessity of discussing an appropriate coding granularity, such as “To what level should we code.” In addition, the importance of education on post-coordination using extension codes that express parts, severity, time axis, and so on was pointed out. After releasing ICD-11 in 2019, discussions to clarify more specific issues and to establish guidelines for the smooth introduction of ICD-11 and operation based on the results of field trials will be active in several countries. Additional implementation of ICD-11 field trials will be desirable for the smooth introduction and operation of ICD-11 in Japan's own medical provision system and public statistics.