The Medical journal of Australia
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Comparative Study
Autopsy rate and a clinicopathological audit in an Australian metropolitan hospital--cause for concern?
To determine the annual autopsy rates at five major Melbourne teaching hospitals between 1979 and 1989; to investigate the cause(s) of the decline in autopsy rates during that period; and to assess the importance of autopsies at the index hospital by a clinicopathological audit. ⋯ The falling autopsy rate at five major teaching hospitals could be attributed to the relatively low status of the autopsy among clinicians and pathologists and the high refusal rates by relatives of the deceased since the introduction in 1983 of the Human Tissue Act 1982 (Vic.). The audit corroborated the importance of autopsies as a diagnostic tool.