Archived News - 2007
NCCQ Registration
Posted December 2007
NHS CfH have reported that the World Health Organisation (WHO) has agreed to make the ICD-10 revised edition Vols. 1 & 3 available as 'Print on Demand'. This continues to make the books available to the NHS. However, due to the small print runs involved and the extra costs incurred in this process the publishers, TSO (The Stationary Office), have had to increase the price of both volumes.
NCCQ Registration
Posted December 2007
Clinical Coders who are intending to sit the NCCQ on March 12th 2008 should note that the closing date for registrations is 31st December 2007. You are reminded that this means that the completed registration form must be with the Institute of Health Records and Information Management (IHRIM) by noon Monday 31 December 2007.
OPCS 4.5 DSCN
Posted December 2007
A Data Set Change Notice (DSCN) has been issued giving the advance notification of the update to OPCS 4.4 - subject to Information Standards Board (ISB) approval. It is expected that a submission will be made to the ISB in October 2008 after which a mandating DSCN will be issued for implementation of OPCS 4.5 in April 2009.
The deadline for requests for inclusion in the proposed release is March 2008. NHS CfH have announced that there will be no OPCS 4 releases in the financial year 2008/9.
Hospital Activity Data Guides
Posted November 2007
The Health Informatics unit of the the Royal College of Physicians has produced a Inform" page of the "Members" section of this site.
Medical Records Standards
Posted September 2007
The Royal College of Physicians has recently published a set of new standards for " Inform" page of the "Members" section of this site.
NCCQ dates
Posted September 2007
NHS CfH have published the dates for the next NCCQ examinations.
- Examination: Wednesday 14 November 2007
- Registration Deadline: Noon Friday 31 August 2007
- Examination: Wednesday 12 March 2008
- Registration Deadline: Noon Monday 31 December 2007
OPCS 4 Update.
Posted August 2007
The NHS CfH Classifications Service have announced the decision to allow a period of consolidation so that the service can familiarise itself with the current updated scheme following the recent updates. The next release of OPCS is scheduled for 2009.
Richard Granger Quits
Posted June 2007
Richard Granger, who heads NHS Connecting for Health, has announced that he is to quit. His announcement means he will no longer be in post by the time the care records system is rolled out.
NCCQ
Posted May 2007
The next two NCCQ (National Clinical Coding Qualification) examinations are expected to take place in November 2007 and March 2008. The dates for these will be announced via the NHS CfH Classifications Service website.
Coding Clinic
Posted April 2007
The Volume 4 Issue 2 March 2007 NHS CFH Coding Clinic has just been published. It is available for download from the NHS CFH Classifications website.(Members can access a direct link from the Members area - select Links - NHS CFH sites - then select Coding Clinics and DQRs from the links box. Contact webmaster@paccuk.org if you are a member and are having difficulty logging in to the Members area.)
Use of the Designatory style ACC(Dis)
Posted April 2007
The Association has been asked by a number of its members about the validity of the use of ACC(Dis) to designate having passed the National Clinical Coding Qualification (NCCQ) with distinction. In accordance with the content of a letter sent to an Association Director in 2006, the Association has previously informed members that the NHS CfH/IHRIM partnership (responsible for the NCCQ) has stated that "Approval has never been given for the use of (Dis) after the designatory letters ACC to indicate pass with distinction..." and the partnership further stated that the use of this designatory style should be ceased forthwith. However, it has been drawn to our attention that this designatory style is being used by NHS CfH in their own documentation. As this is clearly causing some confusion the Association will contact NHS CfH on behalf of its members to seek clarification.
NHS Counter Fraud and Security Managment Service
Posted April 2007
The Memorandum of Understanding here. For more information regarding the CFSMS please visit their website.
Coding Clinic
Posted March 2007
The Volume 4 Issue 1 March 2007 NHS CFH Coding Clinic has just been published. It is available for download from the NHS CFH Classifications website.(Members can access a direct link from the Members area - select Links - NHS CFH sites - then select Coding Clinics and DQRs from the links box. Contact webmaster@paccuk.org if you are a member and are having difficulty logging in to the Members area.)
OPCS 4.4
Posted February 2007
OPCS 4.4 has now been published and is available from the Stationary Office (formerly HMSO).
NCCQ
Posted February 2007
The NHS Classifications service have issued OPCS-4.3 Revision Exercise and Answer Books for candidates taking the NCCQ in March 2007. Those candidates who are revising for the March 2007 National Clinical Coding Qualification (UK) examination can now obtain these by contacting - nccstraining@nhs.net.
SNOMED-CT
Posted January 2007
The College of American Pathologists (CAP) plans to end its ownership of its subsidiary, SNOMED International, reports E-Health insider and Health IT and Strategist magazine. It is believed that the CAP plans to transfer SNOMED to a new international standards development organisation. E-Health Insider reported in November that a meeting of potential charter members for this new agency took place in Denmark in October 2006 and included NHS Connecting for Health representatives.
OPCS 4.4
Posted January 2007
NHS CFH have announced that OPCS 4.4 is now fully authored. The implementation date will be the 8th April 2007 and OPCS-4.4 will be available for sale from The Stationery Office from the end of February 2007.
NHS CFH state that the index to OPCS-4.4 has been improved with additions to the list of surgical abbreviations and the high cost drugs list (expanded to include some antiviral drugs used in the treatment of HIV-AIDS).
NHS CFH have announced that as the level of changes are not of the scale of OPCS-4.3 they will not be issuing dedicated OPCS-4.4 training materials. However, "comprehensive guidance" will be offered to the service.