UNKNOWN
AND UNCERTAIN CAUSE OF DEATH
IF
YOU PRONOUNCED DEATH but do not have the patient’s medical history, you should
contact the deceased’s regular physician or have him or her certify the causes
of death and sign the certificate. The
person who completes the cause of death section and signs the death certificate
should be someone who knows the causes of death, INCLUDING the underlying cause
of death. You are not required to
complete the death certificate at the time of pronouncement, at the death scene,
or at the time of death. State law gives
all certifiers two work days to sign the certificate. See also FAQS:
DO I HAVE TO COMPLETE THE DEATH CERTIFICATE AT THE TIME OF DEATH?
PROBABLE CAUSES
OF DEATH. If you know only the probable
causes of death, you may report those. See also INFORMATION FOR WORRIED
CERTIFIERS
IF YOU KNOW ONLY
CONTRIBUTING FACTORS you may report “unknown natural causes” in Part I, then
list the contributing causes in Part II.
IF “UNKNOWN” IS
ALL YOU CAN REPORT, it is a good idea to include a statement on the death
certificate that explains why the cause of death was unknown. This could include one (or a combination of) the following: “No medical history available”, “Had not seen
a doctor in 20 years”, “Found skeleton in woods”, “No anatomical cause of death
found”, “Found dead” or similar statements.