Emergency Department Coding Practices for People in Suicidal Crisis.
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Emergency Department Coding Practices for People in Suicidal Crisis.
IRAS ID
353625
Contact name
Molly McCarthy
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Liverpool John Moores Univeristy
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
GAP50005291, LJMU Finance System; NIHR306615-McCarthy, NIHR Project Reference
Duration of Study in the UK
3 years, 3 months, 17 days
Research summary
Emergency departments (EDs) play an important role in the care of individuals following self-harm, a suicide attempt or those experiencing suicide-related thoughts and distress, also known as ‘suicidal crisis’. The ED is often the first-place people go for help, where quick and appropriate care can save lives. However, how these visits are recorded, or “coded” in medical records is often inaccurate. For example, a visit may be documented as ‘depression’ or ‘anxiety’ instead of ‘suicidal crisis’ (McCarthy et al., 2021; McCarthy et al., 2024). This is a problem because accurate coding helps to ensure patients get the right follow-up care and that they receive a mental health assessment. Coding data is also used to plan the delivery of services and helps the communication among different healthcare professionals.
This project, therefore, aims to explore:
1. ED coded data to better understand how suicide-related presentations are coded, exploring the link with specific codes and outcomes/pathways.
2. The views of a range of healthcare professionals (e.g., ED nurses, doctors, mental health staff) and operational professionals (e.g., managers, business intelligence staff, commissioners) on the potential introduction of a specific code for ‘suicidal crisis’. For example, whether they would use the code, what factors would help or hinder the use of the code.
3. Co-developing guidance to support the accurate coding on suicidal crisis.REC name
West Midlands - South Birmingham Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
26/WM/0081
Date of REC Opinion
13 May 2026
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion