Background: Transitioning from an old medical coding system to a new one can be challenging, especially when the two coding systems are significantly different. The US experienced such a transition in 2015. Objective: This research aims to introduce entropic measures to help users prepare for the migration to a new medical coding system by identifying and focusing preparation initiatives on clinical concepts with more likelihood of transition challenges. Methods: Two entropic measures of coding complexity are introduced. The first measure is a function of the variation in the alphabets of new codes. The second measure is based on the possible number of valid representations of an old code. Results: A demonstration of how to implement the proposed techniques is carried out using the 2015 mappings between ICD-9-CM and ICD-10-CM/PCS. The significance of the resulting entropic measures is discussed in the context of clinical concepts that were likely to pose challenges regarding documentation, coding errors, and longitudinal data comparisons. Conclusion: The proposed entropic techniques are suitable to assess the complexity between any two medical coding systems where mappings or crosswalks exist. The more the entropy, the more likelihood of transition challenges. Users can utilize the suggested techniques as a guide to prioritize training efforts to improve documentation and increase the chances of accurate coding, code validity, and longitudinal data comparisons.

中文翻译：

---

新医学编码系统中复杂性的熵度量

背景：从旧的医学编码系统过渡到新的编码系统可能会遇到挑战，特别是当两个编码系统明显不同时。美国在2015年经历了这样的转变。目的：本研究旨在引入熵测方法，以帮助用户确定并集中针对临床概念的准备工作，从而更有可能面临转变挑战，从而为向新的医学编码系统的迁移做准备。方法：介绍了两种编码复杂度的熵度量。第一个度量是新代码字母变化的函数。第二种措施是基于旧代码的有效表示形式的可能数量。结果：使用ICD-9-CM和ICD-10-CM / PCS之间的2015映射对如何实施建议的技术进行了演示。在临床概念的背景下讨论了所产生的熵测度的重要性，这些临床概念可能会对文档，编码错误和纵向数据比较构成挑战。结论：提出的熵技术适合评估存在映射或人行横道的任何两个医学编码系统之间的复杂性。熵越多，过渡挑战的可能性就越大。用户可以利用建议的技术作为指导，优先安排培训工作，以改进文档并增加进行准确编码，代码有效性和纵向数据比较的机会。所提出的熵技术适合评估存在映射或人行横道的任何两个医学编码系统之间的复杂性。熵越多，过渡挑战的可能性就越大。用户可以利用建议的技术作为指导，优先安排培训工作，以改进文档并增加进行准确编码，代码有效性和纵向数据比较的机会。所提出的熵技术适合评估存在映射或人行横道的任何两个医学编码系统之间的复杂性。熵越多，过渡挑战的可能性就越大。用户可以利用建议的技术作为指导，优先安排培训工作，以改进文档并增加进行准确编码，代码有效性和纵向数据比较的机会。