Patients with liver failure are frequently seen in the hospital. Usually the condition is acute or subacute and this has to be correctly specified at the time of documentation. Sometimes, patients have hepatic encephalopathy as part of the liver failure picture. It is important to make sure that we do not forget to mention acute or subacute liver failure, even if we are already mentioning hepatic encephalopathy. Usually these patients have other associated conditions such as coagulopathy or portal hypertension.

Marco A. Ramos MD, CCDS

In order to quote from this article please use the following:

Marco A. Ramos, “Clinical Documentation Improvement Series #13. Documenting Liver Failure”, SMO Blog (blog), March 9, 2019, https://steemit.com/healthcare/@secondmedicalop/clinical-documentation-improvement-series-13-documenting-liver-failure

Links to the Previous Posts in this Series

- Clinical Documentation Improvement Series #1. Documenting Acute Respiratory Failure

- Clinical Documentation Improvement Series #2. How and When Do We Use the Body Mass Index (BMI)

- Clinical Documentation Improvement Series #3. Is it Delirium or Encephalopathy?

- Clinical Documentation Improvement Series #4. Documenting Myelopathies and Radiculopathies

- Clinical Documentation Improvement Series #5. Documenting Electrolyte Imbalances.

- Clinical Documentation Improvement Series #6. Substance Dependence and Associated Conditions.

- Clinical Documentation Improvement Series #7. Inpatient versus Observation

- Clinical Documentation Improvement Series #8. The Importance of “Present on Admission”

- Clinical Documentation Improvement Series #9. If the Patient has Elevated Troponins...

- Clinical Documentation Improvement Series #10. Documenting Pneumonia

- Clinical Documentation Improvement Series #11. If the Patient Has Not Eaten for Several Days Before Admission…

- Clinical Documentation Improvement Series #12. Documentation of Acute Kidney Failure

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