ICD-10 Diagnostic Coding System

he world Health Organization had implemented the ICD-10 diagnostic coding system a long time back to replace ICD-9. The primary reason for this being that ICD-9 has several problems and is outdated. Moreover, since the classification is organized scientifically there can be only 10 subcategories in every three-digit category. As new discoveries are being made every other day, there is also no scope to assign these diagnoses to numbers as most numbers in most categories have been assigned diagnoses.

The advancement of modern technology through computer science used along with the specific and detailed codes of ICD-10 will help in the easy scrutiny of disease patterns and treatment outcomes that can advance medical care. This will also help
ICD-10 implementation is not a mere billing or information systems project. It will hugely impact organizations as well. So in order to start preparations for what lies ahead a thorough assessment should be made. One can also seek help from several organizations who provide implementation planning resources for ICD-10-CM.

General Equivalence Mappings or GEMs has been developed by CMS and CDC to identify equivalent relationships between ICD-9-CM and ICD-10-CM codes. The GEMs are not to be used as a coding source but rather as a coding resource to help you understand the granularity of ICD-10. The use of GEMs will not be required when:

Only a couple of codes need to be converted from ICD-9 to ICD-10. In such cases it will be easier to refer to ICD-10 book and this will ensure accuracy as well
Coders will extensively use coding books or coding systems to code rather than use GEMs after ICD-10 is implemented
Prepare for Version 5010/ICD-10 Transition: To determine the impact on your organization, you can begin with analyzing both Version 5010 and ICD-10. This information can be further used in the implementation plan with a detailed timeline, and estimate of