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Medical Certificate of Fact and Cause of Death (MCFCD)

Contacting the Coroner

Medical professionals have an important role to play in the certification of death and sometimes need to liaise with the Coroner when carrying out their functions. Medical professionals should usually contact the Coroner via the Court Services Team in the Viscount's Department. The team will then ensure the call is routed to a Coroner.

Completing an MCFCD

Before a death can be registered by the Superintendent Registrar there must be confirmation of the cause of death.

When the cause of a death needs to be determined at an inquest, then cause will be determined by the Coroner on the basis of the evidence provided to the inquest. In all other cases, the cause needs to be certified in a Medical Certificate of Fact and Cause of Death (MCFCD).

An MCFCD is a certificate that a registered medical practitioner, who must have at least viewed the body after death, provides to the Superintendent Registrar. The MCFCD confirms that a particular person is dead and, to the best of the medical practitioner’s knowledge and belief, the medical cause of death. This completion of MCFCDs is governed by Article 64 of the Marriage and Civil Status (Jersey) Law 2001.

Where a medical professional knows the likely medical cause of a death, the swift completion of an MCFCD will avoid the conduct of an unnecessary post-mortem and enable funeral arrangement to be made for a person.

When can a medical professional complete an MCFCD?

Where a medical practitioner:

  • saw a patient during their final illness and within the period of 14 days preceding the patient's death; and
  • has seen the patient's body after their death,

then the practitioner will be 'qualified' to complete the MCFCD without authorisation from the Coroner.

In such cases the completion of the MCFCD may often be straightforward, particularly if the death was expected or from a natural illness for which the person was being treated. However, if there is doubt as to whether the cause of a death was natural or may have been caused by trauma (e.g. an elderly patient with a terminal illness dies soon after a witnessed fall) then the medical practitioner should contact the Coroner to check whether completion of an MCFCD is appropriate or whether the death might need to be reported to the police.

When will the Coroner need to authorise the completion of an MCFCD?

Where a medical practitioner:

  • has not treated a patient within the 14 days preceding the patient's death; but
  • has viewed the body after death and has sufficient information about the patient's medical history to be able to determine the likely medical cause of death,

then the practitioner will need to be authorised by the Coroner to complete a MCFCD. The Coroner will authorise the completion of an MCFCD if they are satisfied that the likely medical cause of death can be certified by the medical practitioner and there is no reason why an inquest should be held in the circumstances.

Medical practitioners are welcome to contact the Coroner if there is some uncertainty about whether they are qualified in relation to the death or whether the cause of death is natural and how the cause should be recorded in the MCFCD.

Content of an MCFCD

The Cause of Death section on the MCFCD is divided into Part 1 and Part 2.

  • Part 1 is used to show the immediate cause of death and any underlying cause(s). When completing the MCCD, the disease or condition directly leading to the death, must be inserted under 1a. Any other disease or condition which led to the immediate cause of death will be recorded at 1b. If there is any further disease or condition, which led to 1b, then this will be recorded in 1c.

  • Part 2 should be used for any other significant morbid conditions or diseases that may have contributed to the death but were not directly causative. There is also a supplementary information section on the form to record morbid conditions that were present and non-contributory, and accidents suffered in the preceding 12 months that were not contributory to the death.

The approach to completing an MCFCD in Jersey is essential the same as that for completing a Medical Certificate of Cause of Death in England and Wales.

When considering whether a cause of death is acceptable in 1a, 1b or 1c, or might need to be referred to the coroner, medical practitioners should have regard to the Cause of Death List which is published by the Royal College of Pathologists.

When completing Part 2 it is not necessary to record every condition that the deceased suffered from. Only those conditions which are morbid but did not directly cause the death.