Restoring high neonatal autopsy rates

Contrary to the trend in Edinburgh, the decline in autopsy consent rate in the UK continues, and many are concerned that media highlights might have irretrievably damaged public confidence in perinatal autopsy (figure). In Edinburgh, however, from a nadir of 38% in 2001, the year of publication of t...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Lancet (British edition) 2004-12, Vol.364 (9450), p.2019-2020
Main Authors: Becher, Julie-Clare, Laing, Ian A, Keeling, Jean W, McIntosh, Neil
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Autopsy - standards
Autopsy - statistics & numerical data
Humans
Infant, Newborn
Public concern
United Kingdom
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Summary:Contrary to the trend in Edinburgh, the decline in autopsy consent rate in the UK continues, and many are concerned that media highlights might have irretrievably damaged public confidence in perinatal autopsy (figure). In Edinburgh, however, from a nadir of 38% in 2001, the year of publication of the Redfern report, there has been a steady increase in the rate of autopsy consent to 79% in June, 2004. The increased rate in our unit might in part be explained by a fading public memory of such adverse coverage. However, since similar improvements have not been seen at national level, we believe that various other factors have contributed to the rise in the autopsy rate.
ISSN:0140-6736
1474-547X
DOI:10.1016/S0140-6736(04)17510-7