Before any driver is allowed on South African roads, they must meet certain conditions, failure to which their existence on the road poses a fatal threat to other road users. Apart from being 18 years or older and holding a valid driving license, a professional driver should be medically fit, which is why getting the medical form for PDP is crucial.

According to the WHO, road-related injuries are among the leading causes of unnatural deaths globally. The South African government, through the Department of Transport, initiated the National Road Safety Strategy (2016 to 2030) to ensure road deaths are reduced by 50% by 2030. In early 2022, the RTMC also proposed the reduction of the speed limit on urban roads by 10km/h to curb traffic fatalities.

A professional driving permit (PDP or PrDP) medical form is a crucial document for professional drivers in South Africa. It indicates that a person is medically fit to professionally drive heavy vehicles and can behind the wheel for long hours. Neurological conditions or degenerative ailments that affect a person's judgement automatically disqualify someone from getting a driving permit.

PDP medical form download

The medical form for PDP can be downloaded from the NaTIS forms download portal or other get websites, including pdffiller. You will then visit a medical centre where a qualified doctor will conduct several PDP medical tests and fill in the form accordingly.

PDP application

After finishing the medical tests, you should head to the nearest Driving License Testing Centre (DLTC) to complete the PDP application. You will be given the application for driving permit form (PD1), which you have to fill in. You may also have complete the notification of change of address or particulars of person or organization (NCP) form.

Ensure you have the following when going to the DLTC:

• Valid South African ID, passport, or driving license card
• Four identical black and white passport photos
• Proof of postal and residential address
• Have a valid driving license with the same vehicle code for which you are applying for the PDP
• Training certificate for the category D license
• PDP medical certificate, which should not be older than two months.

At the DLTC, you will be required to pay the stipulated fee to the following bank account:

• Bank: ABSA
• Account name: Ideco AFISwitch (Pty) Ltd
• Branch: Business Banking Johannesburg North
• Account type: Cheque account
• Account number: 4074078548
• Branch code: 630256
• Reference: Applicant's ID number

After payment, you will be asked to go to the nearest police station to request a conviction report. Alternatively, your face can be photographed and the picture sent to the station. Note that only Gauteng and Eastern Cape PrDP applications can be booked online.

Disqualifying medical conditions for SA drivers

The following medical conditions disqualify you from obtaining a learner's or driving license in South Africa:

• Uncontrolled epilepsy
• Sudden attacks of disabling giddiness or fainting due to hypertension or other causes
• Mental ailments that require detention, supervision, control, and treatment as stipulated in the Mental Health Act of 1973
• Any medical condition causing muscular incoordination
• Uncontrolled diabetes mellitus
• Defective vision according to the Snellem rating of minimum visual acuity and minimum visual field.

Note: Persons living with disabilities have to get a learner's test and then find a driving school with adapted vehicles to earn a driving permit. Licensed drivers who become disabled should also go for the driving test for the adapted automobile.

Other qualifications for PDP

Apart from medical tests, these qualifications are crucial to obtain a professional driving permit:

• You should not have a criminal record of driving under the influence of narcotic drugs, intoxicating liquor, or a drug with hallucinating effects in the last five years.
• You should not have a record of committing an offence in which violence was an element.
• Your driving license should never have been suspended or revoked.
• You should never have been convicted of a criminal offence or paid an admission of guilt fine in the last five years.

Getting the medical certificate for PDP is an easy but essential process for every professional driver in South Africa. Remember that the permit is not transferable, and another person can only drive your automobile if they have a valid PDP for the appropriate vehicle category. Ensure you follow the right procedures to make South African roads safe!

READ ALSO: What is a NaTIS document and more? Here is everything you need to know

Briefly.co.za highlighted all you need to know regarding the NaTIS document. It is a motor vehicle registration certificate issued by the Department of Transport to prove ownership of a vehicle.

The NaTIS form was implemented for efficient road traffic management, including easy tracking in case of car theft or vehicle ownership transfer. The certificate has unique features to prevent cloning.

Source: Briefly News

One of the worst parts about getting sick is having to lug yourself to the doctor’s surgery just to get a medical certificate to send to your boss, when all you want to do is lay in bed. Well, we’re here to take some of that pain away by introducing you to Updoc.

Updoc is a trusted Aussie health platform that allows users to get legit online medical certificates or consult with doctors without having actually to go into a doctor’s surgery. Yep, that means you don’t even have to leave your bed.

How does Updoc work?

While it does sound too good to be true, it’s actually a super simple process. All you have to do is complete a quick consultation form with your health concerns/why you’re feeling awful, then an independent registered Aussie partner doctor will review the consultation. If approved, they will send a medical certificate directly to your inbox within a few hours.

Alternatively, if you need more of a general consult, you can now easily speak with a registered Health Practitioner about any health-related issues you need help with from anywhere in Australia. If required, they’ll get you sorted with a prescription or a referral or provide you with a medical certificate and send it immediately to your inbox.

Is using it expensive?

Surprisingly, it won’t cost you an arm and a leg, with consults for medical certificates starting from just $19.95. General consultations also start from $49.95.

What are the operating hours?

General consultations are available from 9am to 10pm on weekdays and 9am to 5pm on weekends, and can be accessed from anywhere in Australia. If you’re just after a standard medical certificate, you can submit a request at any time of day throughout the week, and Updoc will get to your request urgently within the next day.

Is Updoc legitimate?

All of Updoc’s certificates are valid documents and meet all the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009 — which requires providing enough evidence that the employee was genuinely entitled to the sick or carer’s leave. Your employer is allowed to ask for more evidence if they require it, and employers can validate the authenticity of certificates through the “employer verify” section of Updoc’s website.

So long, waiting rooms. If you’d like to learn more about Updoc, you can head over to its website here.

At PEDESTRIAN.TV, we independently choose and write about stuff we love and think you’ll froth too. We have affiliate partnerships so we might get a bit of money from any purchase you make based on our recs, cool? Cool. FYI - prices are accurate and items in stock at the time of posting.

Depending on where you work, you’ll probably be asked for a medical certificate if you call in sick. The joys of having bosses who don’t trust you! And if you’re actually sick? The last thing you want to do is drag your unwell ass out of bed and to a GP. Thankfully online medical certificates and online consults exist — and Aussie health platform Updoc is making it easy for you.

Updoc allows you to consult with a doctor or get online medical certificates straight from the comfort of your bed (where you should be resting). Basically, you jump on your phone and complete a quick consultation form that details why you feel like shit.

Then an independent, registered Aussie partner doctor will review the consultation, and call you to discuss it further. Once you’ve had your consult they’ll get you sorted with a prescription, or a referral or provide you with a medical certificate and send it immediately to your inbox.

Not bad if it hits you overnight and you’re sitting there in your own filth just waiting for an appropriate time to notify your boss, right?

General consultations are available from 9am to 10pm on weekdays and 9am to 5pm on weekends, and can be accessed from anywhere in Australia. If you’re just after a standard medical certificate though, you can submit a request at any time of day, and Updoc will get to your request urgently within the next day.

The online medical certificate consults start at $14.95, a small price to pay for convenience, and I spend more than that for weekly UberEats deliveries alone. General consultations start from $49.95.

Aside from the convenience, using a service like Updoc also gives you more time to do what you need to be doing: getting better.

I’m no picture of health, but holy eff, this is what the world needs more of. I’m not a doofus, I know online medical certificates already exist, but Updoc seems to take the obstacle-free cake. Bookmark this page and stress less about your next impending sick day.

You can find more about Updoc here.

All pilots who require any type of vision correction to meet FAA standards will notice new wording on their next FAA medical certificate. While there used to be seven vision restriction choices the AME could place on a pilot’s medical certificate—such as “must wear corrective lenses” or “must have available glasses for near vision”—there is now only one such choice.

The FAA made this change to simplify things for both pilots and AMEs alike, although at first glance this new limitation can be a bit confusing to read.

Please keep in mind that this only applies to visual acuity limitations and does not apply to separate vision restrictions. These include letters of eligibility or waivers (Statements of Demonstrated Ability) for color vision deficiencies or other types of conditions requiring specific FAA approval such as amblyopia (lazy eye) or true one-eye monovision.

This new change reflects only those limitations for run-of-the-mill use of corrective lenses for distant, near, and, when applicable, intermediate vision. The only limitation choice is now “must use corrective lens(es) to meet vision standards at all required distances.”

On the face of it, the wording initially seems a bit odd. It gives the impression that the pilot must use some corrective lens (or lenses) for “all” distances. That is not the case, however. In its guidance to AMEs to use this new restriction, the FAA states that it must be placed “when corrective lenses are required to meet any [emphasis mine] of the visual acuity standards.”

For example, if a pilot needs to have only practicing glasses in their possession to meet the near-vision requirements, the new restriction will be placed on their medical certificate but the spirit is still the same—have practicing glasses with you. If a pilot wears unifocal contact lenses, unifocal glasses, bifocals, trifocals, or progressive lenses to meet any or all of the visual acuity requirements, the limitation placed on their medical certificate will be the same newer restriction noted above.

Nothing will change in regard to which corrective lens the pilot actually uses, just in the wording on their medical certificate. 

On a separate note, while not in great favor with the FAA, there is some acceptance of the newer multifocal contact lenses, which theoretically provide correction for both distant and near vision. There is a one-time “tap dance” (read eye evaluation data submission) to permit this, but the multifocal contacts are indeed approvable on a case-by-case basis.

While most of the admittedly-few pilots in my practice who are using these lenses seem to love them—as they report that they can see at distance quite well, without needing separate practicing glasses for near vision—it is sometimes difficult to get their visual acuity to measure within FAA standards at all required distances at their FAA exams. Nonetheless, if they pass and the required eye evaluation data is favorable, the pilot gets their medical certificate.

All that said, the best news here is that the pilot’s subjective experiences with multifocal contacts seem to surpass their objective data. Pilots report that they see quite well at all distances with their multifocal contacts. Good for them.

I tried several brands of multifocal contact lenses myself and found that I could see no distance well at all. My personal experience with these lenses was a clear failure, although I have successfully worn unifocal contacts for more than 50 years but need to also keep practicing glasses with me.

For those who have successful outcomes with multifocal contact lenses, the FAA permits their use in pilots.

In an upcoming blog, I intend to discuss more thoroughly an issue that is gaining traction in social medial circles and aviation-related chat rooms and is something that is asked about by many of the pilots visiting my office. But I’ll touch on it now.

This subject relates to concerns that the FAA is overlooking cardiovascular concerns that are reportedly a result of the Covid vaccines. Usually, pilots are concerned that the FAA is making too big a deal of medical conditions, but this situation is exactly the opposite.

Nobody asked for this darned Covid virus to show up and we’ve been dealing with its ramifications for more than three full years now. There are several cardiovascular risks from the virus itself and these can be quite severe. Fortunately, they are also pretty rare.

I have covered these in detail in prior blogs, as I have some of the then-known potential vaccine risks (these risks are rare but do exist).

More recently, there have been yet new concerns related specifically to the use of the Covid vaccines as they pertain to the pilot’s electrocardiograms (ECG). There are risks and benefits to everything we do in medicine, and that includes choices to take, or not take, a vaccine.

The main concern being discussed recently is whether a slight change in a certain timing interval on a pilot’s ECG is something to be concerned about, whether it is a result of a Covid vaccine, and whether the FAA is sweeping this under the proverbial rug.

One thing I can assure pilots is that the FAA is not trying to hide from concerning new adverse vaccine reactions that could lead to a multitude of incapacitating events in pilots while in flight. That would not do anybody any good. However, the FAA has not done an adequate job of discussing the concerns as of yet.

In light of the exact concerns, here’s some of the information that the FAA put out to AMEs internally. In stating its overall support of the Covid vaccines, it notes, “The FAA has no evidence of aircraft accidents or incapacitations caused by pilots suffering medical complications associated with Covid-19 vaccines.”

OK, good enough so far, but tell me more! The remainder of the guidance continues, “When making changes to medical requirements and guidance, the FAA follows standard processes based on data and science. New scientific evidence enabled the FAA to safely raise the tolerance used to screen for a certain heart condition.”

A certain heart condition. The best the FAA could do is state to AMEs—the folks trained to become physicians and to be the aeromedical liaison between pilots and the FAA—that science was used to determine that “a certain heart condition” was properly evaluated.

I find this nebulous statement given to AMEs by the FAA to be uninformative and disappointing, especially considering the amount of social media attention and published concerns that this subject is receiving.  

That said, the cardiac interval is something that has been under scrutiny in both basic cardiology literature and FAA medicine for the more than 30 years that I have been an AME. There’s nothing new there.

Even so, I hope for more complete information from the FAA on a subject that has become a true hotbed in the airline and business jet cockpits—and unfortunately in the AME’s office, too. I am presently asked about this situation several times daily by pilots in my office, while at the same time also receiving numerous email inquiries.

While no pilot wants to receive the dreaded “nastygram” that their ECG has come into question, sometimes that does happen. In those cases, a one-time cardiology evaluation is required to ensure that the changes noted on the pilot’s ECG are not pathological in nature and do not pose concerning risks to aviation safety.

In this circumstance, however, part of the concern is that an ECG finding that might have been evaluated in the past is now simply acceptable to the FAA without further analysis. Again, the FAA has clearly stated that they have researched the situation with its cardiology consultants and that no significant risks are being stifled.

I am not trying to downplay any aviation medicine risk factor. When cardiac intervals reach concerning levels (for some conditions, too short of an interval is as bad, if not worse, than one that is too long) there are indeed risks for worsening cardiac outcomes. These cases definitely need evaluation and sometimes must be followed on an ongoing basis, typically annually.

There are way too many additional nuances to this entire discussion to continue with today. I am using this introduction as the “tease” to a future blog that will be entirely devoted to these concerns.

While I could write endlessly on the medical aspects of the specific ECG finding in question, I am hopeful that the FAA will shed some additional light on the subject in the meantime. At that time, I will discuss the ECG changes themselves more specifically and what the inherent risks are relating to these changes.

The question will remain, however, as to whether the Covid vaccines are, or are not, truly impacting such conditions more than the virus itself would. After following Covid carefully for three years, it is my impression that the vaccines are, for the most part, doing way more good than they are harm.

We must be objective in our evaluations and discussions, however, as any vaccine can pose some risk, too. There is still plenty of data to gather and research to be done, as everything involving Covid evolves in a continuous and ongoing manner. This will be a long-term and challenging epidemiological research project.

I think it will be years before the statistical research on many Covid-related subjects provide answers that will be satisfactory to many people, including pilots, who have understandable concerns at the present time. I am doing my best to review all of the data that I can accumulate on an unbiased and comprehensive level.

While my initial impression is that the now-acceptable slight increase in the ECG interval in question—which the FAA has added to the list of “normal variants” that don’t require an evaluation if the pilot is asymptomatic—does not pose a significant new aeromedical risk, I will continue to evaluate the situation objectively.

I further remain hopeful that the FAA will soon publish a bit more information on its research and discussions with its cardiologists. Stay tuned.

Dr. Robert Sancetta is a former DC-10 captain with 11,000 flight hours. He has worked as a Senior AME since 1993 and is appointed as AME consultant to the FAA Federal Air Surgeon.

The opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily endorsed by AIN Media Group.

The outbreak of the Coronavirus has had a significant effect on travel on both a domestic and worldwide scale. Because these vaccines are so efficient at stopping the spread of the virus, international borders are gradually beginning to relax their restrictions. Since scientists and other medical professionals worked so swiftly to develop vaccines, we can now resume our everyday activities, and there is no longer any risk of the disease spreading.

Because of the risks associated with going to a different nation, you will likely be required to attach your immunization certificate to your passport before you are allowed to leave the country. This verifies that you have completed the entire immunization series and protects yourself, other passengers, and the community as a whole.

Before getting your shots in India, if you are considering an overseas vacation or are a frequent traveler to other countries, you should research which immunizations will be recognized in your ultimate destination.

Cowin, a digital health passport app, uses blockchain technology to securely store your immunization records and attach them to your passport. All you need to do is get the app, upload your immunization certificate and passport information, and you're ready to go.

The Step-by-Step Guide to Creating a Cowin Account With Your Passport


Step 1: You can register for a new account in the CoWIN app by providing a photo ID as a passport photo.

You are required to begin by self registration cowin gov in for an account on the primary website for CoWIN. Please verify your identity by entering your mobile device's one-time password (OTP). By going to the website www.cowin.gov.in, you can confirm that your mobile number is correct.


Step 2: Please use the information from your passport to complete the space for a photo ID.


After your identity has been validated, you will be taken to a registration page where you will be requested to provide various personal information, including your complete name, gender, date of birth, and the sort of government-issued photo identification you currently possess, among other things. Select "Passport," and then enter the pertinent information from your passport after selecting this option.


Step 3: Make an appointment with a medical professional and purchase the vaccine.

You can locate a vaccination center close to you by going to the page labeled "Book Appointment for Vaccination" and entering the information for your state, district, and zip code. Choose a location, then go ahead and click the "Book" button to set up an appointment at the most suitable time. Once you have confirmed your work, you will be able to receive your immunization at a time and date of your choosing, regardless of when you originally scheduled it. Remember that your doses should be evenly spaced throughout the day.

You must update your passport information if you already have a CoWIN account. Still, in the past, you have been vaccinated using another type of cowin self registration picture ID (like a driver's license or an Aadhaar Card, for example).

The Cowin app is extremely easy to use and will help you save time. All you need to do is follow a few simple steps, and within minutes, your immunization certificate will be linked to your passport. The app also helps you keep track of the immunizations you have received, reminds you when it's time to renew your certificate, and provides a secure way to store all of your immunization records.

So go ahead and get the Cowin app and ensure your passport is linked to your immunization certificate in minutes! With Cowin, you can feel confident that your travels will be safe and secure.


Improving Your Existing Cowin Account with Your New Passport Information.


The initial step is to ensure that the COVID immunization certificate contains the individual's passport number and has been recently updated.



Step 1: Include your passport number on the COVID vaccine certificate.


You must first log in to your CoWIN account and then head to the "Account Details" part of the website to submit a problem report regarding your account. After that, select the option that reads "Add Passport Details" and enter your passport number in the box labeled "Enter Beneficiary's Passport Number." You must double-check the passport number you have provided, as it is impossible to modify the data inside the photo ID after it has been sent in.



Step 2: Confirm and submit changes.

To verify that you are the passport owner, you will need to enter your passport number and check the box saying that you are the passport owner. Choose the "Submit Request" tab, and then conclude by clicking the button at the bottom of the page.

Step 3: An affirmation message will be sent to your phone.


Your CoWIN account's mobile phone number will receive a confirmation text message shortly after you have successfully logged in. Because of the volume of traffic on the network at the moment, this notification won't show up on your phone for a few minutes. In a short amount of time following that, you should receive a second notification stating that your request has been successfully changed.



Conclusion


Be certain that you have had the two doses of the vaccination that are advised for you and that your passport is linked to the immunization certificate that corresponds to your vaccinations before departing on an international trip. Please take your time and ensure that the passport number is entered accurately on the very first try.

If you have a passport that has been linked to a COVID vaccine, you are free to travel anywhere in the globe without any additional documentation. However, this freedom will only last as long as the country you travel to does not alter its COVID criteria for Indian nationals. In the days and weeks preceding your trip, you must make every effort to remain current on any changes that may have been made to domestic or international travel restrictions. To enter some countries, you should take a COVID test.

ये भी पढ़ें - अपने राज्य / शहर की खबर अख़बार से पहले पढ़ने के लिए क्लिक करे

© Provided by Cheyenne-Scottsbluff KGWN-TV Laramie County Community College’s Health Information Technology and Management (HITM) program was named among the nation’s top 50 online medical coding degree programs by a trusted resource for higher education ranking and planning.

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (PRESS RELEASE) - Laramie County Community College’s Health Information Technology and Management (HITM) program was named among the nation’s top 50 online medical coding degree programs by a trusted resource for higher education ranking and planning.

Intelligent.com, which provides research to help students make informed higher education decisions, creates curated guides, including for best online medical degree coding programs in 2023. LCCC’s Medical Claims Coding Associate certificate was ranked 32, earning an 87.44 “intelligence score.” The score evaluates a school’s program on tuition costs, admission, retention and graduation rates, faculty, and reputation, as well as the student resources provided for online students.

“I was so glad to see (the ranking), and I hope it helps our students know that they are getting a good education,” said Ann Howard, LCCC’s HITM program director.

The Medical Claims Coding Associate program builds on the Medical Office Essentials credit diploma and addresses specialized skills in medical coding and reimbursement, including advanced techniques in medical insurance, reimbursement methodologies, basic health information management, electronic health records and basic and advanced coding, emphasizing CPT/HCPCS and ICD coding.

The coding courses prepare students for a national coding exam through the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA). The courses for the Medical Office Essentials credit diploma are embedded in the Medical Claims Coding Associate Certificate of Completion.

Those who enjoy working independently and appreciate the intersection of information technology and healthcare are a good fit for the program, Howard said.

“Once they graduate from the program, they can sit for the national exams, then they can go anywhere and work,” she said. “Our curriculum follows the coding exam, so our students are ready when they leave.”

For more information about the Health Information and Technology Management program, contact Ann Howard at ahoward1@lccc.wy.edu or 307.432.1686. The full Intelligence.com list can be found at intelligent.com/best-online-medical-coding-degree-programs.

The Ministry of Health has issued a new resolution.

Belarus has extended the validity of some medical certificates of health. The corresponding decree of the Ministry of Health has been published on the National Legal Portal.

The validity of the health certificate for spa treatment has been increased from six months to one year.

Health certificates for children for health improvement, sports and recreational camps are increased from three days to five days.

Health certificates with information on illnesses, home treatment, quarantine, absence of contact with infectious diseases of a child attending a school or day care centre - from three days to five days.

The period of validity of a health certificate determining the ability to participate in sports and sporting events (including physical education examinations) has been increased from six months to one year.

In addition, a health certificate confirming the presence (absence) of diseases that constitute medical grounds for exemption from studying certain subjects will now be issued for a period of one year.

The University of Vermont Medical Center in Burlington submitted a certificate of need to the Green Mountain Care Board for a multispecialty ASC that would cost $130 million, Vermont Biz reported Feb. 10.

The ASC would be built on the hospital's Tilley Drive campus in South Burlington, Vt. It would have eight operating rooms, 12 prep rooms and 36 recovery spaces. The surgery center would also be equipped with a Mako robot for orthopedic joint procedures.

The surgery center would allow UVM Medical Center to shift surgeries from its Fanny Allen campus in Colchester, Vt., to the ASC, which would help meet the demand for surgical care in the area, according to Vermont Biz.

The hospital expects the surgery center to have the capacity to perform about 8,000 outpatient surgeries annually.

COVID was Australia's third leading cause of death (after heart disease and dementia) in 2022. In a bad flu year we have about 1,200 influenza deaths. We had more than 1,500 COVID deaths in just the first month of 2023. We need to take COVID seriously. It is not like a cold or the flu. It is an exceptional disease.

Because of the availability of vaccines and antivirals, there is no need for panic or further lockdowns. But there is no room for complacency either.

The starting point in taking COVID seriously is ensuring policymakers and the public have confidence in the data about who is getting sick and who is dying. Without accurate data, there is no way to track the disease or work out how best to contain it.

And a crucial part of this is ensuring people understand how death certificates work and how death data are recorded.

Dying of COVID or with COVID?

A common misconception is that the numbers being reported are people who died with, not of, COVID.

Dying of COVID means COVID caused your death. Dying with COVID means you died from another cause, but just happened to have COVID at the time.

While we routinely collect data about both, a COVID death is when you die of COVID.

This misconception makes it easy to dismiss COVID deaths on the basis that the numbers being reported are exaggerated. Dismissing the numbers makes people complacent and lets governments off the hook. If we all pretend COVID is just a mild disease, there is no need for governments and individuals to do our bit to minimize its spread.

For most people whose vaccinations are up to date, COVID really is a mild disease. But about one in ten people infected with COVID go on to develop "long COVID" and the number of COVID deaths just keeps increasing as the pandemic drags on.

How the system works

The cause of every death in Australia must be certified by a medical practitioner. If the cause of death is not clear, the death is reported to the state or territory coroner for a coronial investigation.

After the cause of death is determined either by a medical practitioner or the coroner, a death certificate is issued and sent to the bureau of births, deaths and marriages in each state or territory.

From there, the data are sent to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, which is the independent statutory agency responsible for national statistical reporting.

The death certificate

The death certificate records the immediate cause or the condition that led directly to death. It also records what are called "antecedent causes".

Antecedent causes are the underlying causes. These are the conditions or events that occurred before the immediate cause. All other significant conditions that contributed to the death but were not related to the disease or condition that caused it must also be reported.

So how does it work in practice? Imagine a family member dies of respiratory problems after having COVID. In this imaginary case, the direct cause of death is recorded as "acute respiratory distress syndrome". The acute respiratory distress syndrome was due to pneumonia. In turn, the pneumonia was due to COVID. COVID is recorded as the antecedent cause of death. So the data may be recorded like this:

The way medical certificates are written is important. They provide us quite accurate data on who dies of COVID (where COVID recorded as the direct or the antecedent cause) and who dies with it (COVID recorded as an "other significant condition"). We use both of these pieces of information for different purposes.

Professional judgment

While the cause of a person's death is usually clear, this isn't always the case. Sometimes doctors and coroners have to exercise their professional judgment in determining the cause of death.

But this is a long way from claims on social media that medical practitioners and coroners are systematically reporting deaths "with COVID" as deaths "of COVID" as a way to exaggerate the COVID death toll. This is simply nonsense.

There are often time delays between a person dying and their death certificate being issued.

This is particularly the case for deaths referred to the coroner for investigation. In the interim, health departments around the country need data in real time so they can track the pandemic. They compile provisional COVID cause of death data as they go and then progressively update their data as death certificates are finalized. While this causes the numbers to fluctuate a little from week to week, the data used in official statistics are of very high quality.

Australian clinical training, standards and documentation are excellent by all international standards. Australia has well developed systems in place for the accurate reporting of the causes of death and illness.

These systems should inspire confidence in the numbers and that medical practitioners and coroners are reporting COVID deaths correctly.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.