Audit of ICD-10 diagnosis use at admission assessments and in discharge summaries by psychiatric trainees

Article 14 of the General and Specialist Medical Practice Order 2003 for specialties in psychiatry describes the specific conditions that a doctor must meet in order to be eligible as a specialist for the purposes of inclusion on the Specialist Register. The conditions as published by the Royal College of Psychiatrists (2003) include, among other requirements, that the psychiatrist shall demonstrate working knowledge of the epidemiology, aetiology, psychopathology, clinical features and natural history of the major psychiatric disorders in ICD-10 (World Health Organization, 1992), including age, gender and sociocultural considerations, based upon the scientific literature. Familiarity with ICD-10 diagnostic criteria is therefore an important part of psychiatric training.