Journal List > Korean J Leg Med > v.43(2) > 1126525

Oh and Lee: Historical Changes of Korean Death Certificate Form

Abstract

The death certificate is a medical document that proves the death of a person and forms the basis of an administrative death report. It is a source of statistics on the cause of a person's death and the basic tool used in national health policy and health promotion activities. This study reviews the major categories of historical changes made to the Korean death certificate form over the years. During the Japanese colonial period, the death certificate form was first introduced under the Koii (public doctor) system. However, the first structurally organized form of the death certificate was based on the “National Medical Service Act” (June 26, 1955.); it was structurally very similar to the current form. Since the enactment of the “Enforcement Decree of the Medical Service Act”, the death certificate form has undergone structural changes 13 times. The changes made to the contents or format of the death certificate during its 98 revisions can be classified into eight categories: death certificate title, form language, personal information, place of death, cause of death, manner of death, information on unnatural death, and other changes (chart number, serial number, confirmation seal, etc.). The authors hope that future revisions to the Korean death certificate would make it easier to write.

Figures and Tables

Fig. 1

Death certificate form was first introduced in the official gazette (No. 601: 1914.8.3.) by Chosun Governor General in Japanese colonial period.

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Fig. 2

International standard form of medical certificate of “cause of death.” Reproduced from World Health Organization. International statistical classification of diseases and related health problems, 10th revision [Internet]. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2016 [2].

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Notes

Conflicts of Interest No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.

Appendices

Appendix 1

General view of historical changes of medical law concerning about the death certificate form from Japanese colonial period to the Republic of Korea.

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Appendix 2

The present Korean death certificate form (2015.12.23. K14 form).

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Appendix 3

translated contents of death certificate form under the Koii (pubic doctor) system in Japanese colonial period.

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Appendix 4

Death certificate form based on ⌜National Medical Service Act⌟(1951.12.25.).

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Appendix 5

The revised death certificate form based on “National Medical Service Act” (1955.5.21.). This is the first, structurally organized form very similar with the present death certificate form.

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Appendix 6

Historical changes of death certificate form related with “place of death”: (A) 1962.5.7.–1969.7.15. (K1–K4 form), (B) 1973.10.17.–1989.2.28. (K5 & K6 form), (C) 1993.8.20.–2008.2.13. (K7–K11 form), (D) 2009.4.29. (K12 form), and (E) 2011.4.7.–2015.12.23. (K13 & K14 form).

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Appendix 7

Historical changes of death certificate form related with “cause of death”: (A) 1962.5.7.–1969.7.15. (K1–K4 form), (B) 1973.10.17.–1989.2.28. (K5 & K6 form), (C) 1993.8.20.–1994.9.27. (K7 & K8 form), (D) 2000.10.21.–2008.2.13. (K9–K11 form), and (E) 2009.4.29.–2015.12.23. (K12–K14 form).

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Appendix 8

Historical changes of death certificate form related with “approximate interval: onset to death”: (A) 1962.5.7.–1989.2.28. (K1–K6 form), (B) 1993.8.20.–1994.9.27. (K7 & K8 form), (C) 2000.10.21. (K9 form), and (D) 2002.7.11.–2015.12.23. (K10–K14 form).

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Appendix 9

Historical changes of death certificate form related with “manner of death”: (A) 1962.5.7.–1989.2.28. (K1–K6 form), (B) 1993.8.20.–2008.2.13. (K7–K11 form), (C) 2009.4.29. (K12 form), and (D) 2011.4.7.–2015.12.23. (K13 & K14 form).

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Appendix 10

Historical change of death certificate format related with “information of unnatural death”: (A) 1962.5.7.–1969.7.15. (K1–K4 form), (B) 1973.10.17.–1989.2.28. (K5 & K6 form), (C) 1993.8.20.–2008.2.13. (K7–K11 form), (D) 2009.4.29. (K12 form), and (E) 2011.4.7.–2015.12.23. (K13 & K14 form).

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Appendix 11

Death certificate related with “qualifications of the issuer”: (A) 1994.9.27. (K8 form) and (B) 2015.12.23. (K14 form).

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ORCID iDs

SuHyeon Oh
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6836-1967

SangHan Lee
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0390-3494

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