ATC -> ICD – evaluating the reliability of prognoses for ICD-10 diagnoses derived from the ATC-Code of prescriptions

Introduction Currently, the lack of standardized, reliable and systematic coding of diagnoses in the Austrian outpatient sector renders the availability of valid epidemiological data impossible. Moreover, diagnoses are the basis for an assessment of the cost-effectiveness, a quality monitoring and the calculation of Diagnosis Related Groups (DRG). Therefore, the department for Evidence Based Health Care in the Main Association of the Austrian Social Insurance Institutions has initiated a project to obtain valid diagnoses from the outpatient sector.