Prepared for:

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

2101 East Jefferson Street

Rockville, MD 20852

http://www.ahrq.gov

Contract No. 290-97-0013

Prepared by:

University of California at San Francisco (UCSF)-Stanford University Evidence-based Practice Center

A. Eugene Washington, M.D., M.Sc., EPC Director

Kathryn M. McDonald, M.M., EPC Coordinator

Investigators

Kaveh G. Shojania, M.D.

Elizabeth C. Burton, M.D.

Kathryn M. McDonald, M.M.

Lee Goldman, M.D., M.P.H.

AHRQ Publication No. 03-E002

October 2002

ISBN: 1-58763-075-3

ISSN: 1530-4396

This document is in the public domain and may be used and reprinted without permission except Those copyrighted materials noted for which further reproduction is prohibited without the specific permission of copyright holders.

On December 6, 1999, under Public Law 106129, the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR) was reauthorized and renamed the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). The law authorizes AHRQ to continue its research on the cost, quality, and outcomes of health care, and expands its role to improve patient safety and address medical errors.

This report may be used, in whole or in part, as the basis for development of clinical practice guidelines and other quality enhancement tools, or a basis for reimbursement and coverage policies. AHRQ or U.S. Department of Health and Human Services endorsement of such derivative products may not be stated or implied.

Suggested Citation:

Shojania K, Burton E, McDonald K, et al. The Autopsy as an Outcome and Performance Measure. Evidence Report/Technology Assessment No. 58 (Prepared by the University of California at San Francisco-Stanford Evidence-based Practice Center under Contract No. 290-97-0013). AHRQ Publication No. 03-E002. Rockville, MD: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. October 2002.