ICD-11 stands for the International Classification of Diseases, 11th Revision. It is a standardised set of codes and definitions for diseases, health conditions, symptoms, and other health-related factors.
The World Health Organization (WHO) maintains the resource for global use across different countries and health systems.
What ICD-11 is useful for
ICD-11 supports a simple idea: if different people use different labels for the same thing, it is hard to learn from data. A shared classification makes it easier to aggregate and interpret information without constantly translating between local terms.
ICD-11 codes are for use across health and care to support:
- consistent recording of diagnoses and health-related conditions
- reporting and analysis within and between systems
- public health monitoring and planning
- research and evaluation
You will often encounter ICD codes behind the scenes in clinical records, referral pathways, commissioning datasets, and outcomes reporting.
Why ICD-11 codes can be useful for charities
Most charities are not trying to “diagnose” people. But many charities do need to understand needs, describe cohorts, collaborate with statutory partners, and evidence outcomes. ICD-11 can help when you want your data to be interpretable and comparable.
It can be useful to:
- Impact and evaluation: align your monitoring data with how health systems describe need and outcomes, so you can compare findings with external datasets.
- Service design: spotting patterns in who your service reaches, what people present with, and what pathways or support packages tend to work for different groups.
- Partnership working: reducing friction when you share information with NHS or local authority partners, or when you need to interpret information they send you.
- Funding and commissioning conversations: using a recognised classification can make your case clearer when you are discussing evidence of need, reach, and outcomes.
Practical charity use cases
| What you are trying to do | How ICD-11 helps | What to watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Design an outcomes framework for a service connected to health pathways | Gives you consistent categories to map needs and health-related outcomes, and to align with partner datasets | Only code what you genuinely need. Keep language person-centred in reports |
| Analyse referrals and presentations over time | Reduces ambiguity when similar terms are used differently across teams or partners | Make sure staff have guidance and supervision. Avoid over-coding sensitive detail |
| Segment a cohort for service design (e.g. complexity, co-occurring needs) | Helps you build clearer, more comparable segments that can be tracked and evaluated | Use ICD categories alongside social factors and lived experience, not instead of them |
| Work with NHS / public health data | Makes it easier to translate between your internal labels and statutory reporting | Be clear about governance, consent, access controls, and retention |
When to use ICD-11 (and when not to)
Use ICD-11 when you need a standard classification, for example:
- evaluation and reporting where comparability matters
- work that connects to clinical or statutory datasets
- designing dashboards or data models that may later need to map to health codes
Do not force ICD-11 into contexts where it does not fit, for example:
- where a plain-language description is clearer and more appropriate
- where labelling or coding could increase stigma or reduce trust
- where you do not have the right governance, consent, or safeguarding approach for sensitive data
ICD vs DSM (what’s the difference?)
Both the ICD and DSM cover mental health, but they are different tools.
ICD
- published by WHO
- designed as a global standard across health systems
- covers all diseases and many health-related conditions (not just mental health)
- commonly used for health system reporting and international comparability
DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders)
- published by the American Psychiatric Association
- focused specifically on mental disorders
- widely used in some clinical and academic settings, especially in the United States
A practical way to think about it:
- ICD is a global classification in use across many parts of health and care.
- DSM is a specialist manual with a focus on mental disorders.
In many contexts, especially outside the US, ICD is the primary reference for coding and reporting.
ICD-10 vs ICD-11
ICD-10 is the previous revision and is still used in some systems. ICD-11 is newer and offers updates to structure, terminology, and digital readiness. The key point for most readers is that both are classification standards, and organisations may be transitioning at different speeds.
How to use ICD-11 responsibly
ICD-11 codes can be powerful, but they should not replace understanding a person’s situation.
- Be clear about purpose: recording, evaluation, referral, reporting, or research.
- Only capture the minimum information you need for that purpose.
- Keep governance tight for sensitive health information (access, retention, sharing, consent where required).
- Use person-centred language in communications, even when you use codes behind the scenes.
Where to find the official ICD-11 resource
- ICD-11 Browser (WHO): https://icd.who.int/