“In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes” (Benjamin Franklin)
Few people in the UK are unfamiliar with the name Harold Shipman. In January 2000, Shipman was convicted of murdering 15 of his patients, but in reality probably over 200. He was said to have issued false medical certificates of death without the suspicious circumstances of their deaths coming to light. He, like many other doctors, knew all along that it was doctors who decide whether or not to report a death to the investigating official.
Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service. Death and the Procurator Fiscal — Information and Guidance for Medical Practitioners (Oct. 2008) Accessed via www.copfs.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/13546/0000506.pdf [date last accessed 07.01.2009].
General Register Office; Guidance for Doctors Completing Medical Certificates of Cause of Death in England and Wales (Sept 2008) Accessed via www.gro.gov.uk/medcert/ [date last accessed 07.01.2009].
7.
Home OfficeDeath Certification and Investigation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland: The Report of a Fundamental Review (2003) London: Stationery Office: Accessed via www.archive2.official-documents.co.uk/document/cm58/5831/5831.pdf [date last accessed 07.01.2009].
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LuceT.Reform of the coroner system and death certification. British Medical Journal (2007) 335: p. 680–1.
Scottish Government. What to do after a Death in Scotland — Practical Advice for Times of Bereavement (2008) Accessed via www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/02/26152921/0 [date last accessed 07.01.2009].
