Coroner/Medical Examiner
The sudden or unexplained death of a person has a huge impact on families and friends of the deceased, and it places a huge role of responsibility on the medical examiner to answer questions which may provide closure. Interaction with the loved ones of the deceased is a delicate matter that must be dealt with calmly and professionally. Generally, medical examiners are overachievers, objective, analytical, and optimistic. “I can’t do anything for the deceased, they’re gone. But if I can do anything for the family, I will.” (www.voxmagazine.com)
Being a coroner is a very difficult role. For example, you have five questions you must answer every time on the scene: who(person’s identity), when(date of death), where(place of death), how(medical cause of death), by what means(natural causes, accident, homicide, suicide, or undetermined). Usually after the coroner has answered all questions that he/she needs, then the family arranges for the body to be sent to the service provider of their choice. In some cases when the family can’t make the arrangements due to difficulties, the coroner sends the body to a designated forensic lab or a hospital for an autopsy. Most people think that to be an organ donor you have to have it done or planned before death. Some cases when the coroner is involved then sometimes it is possible for the donations of tissue or organs. When the family is involved they should let the coroner know of the wishes wanted. During a death investigation, funeral plans can be set back if an autopsy is needed, or if the investigation takes additional time.
A coroner is a person who has the qualifications of a lawyer, medical doctor, or sometimes both. Coroners usually work part time, the rest of ...
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...ally chalk or tape the outline of a body? The answer is no, it’s only on TV for a dramatic effect; they measure where the body is, photograph, and videotape the scene.
If you ever enjoyed watching crime scene shows then maybe being a coroner is for you. To be a coroner you have to be licensed by the Louisiana State Board of Medical Examiners to practice medicine in Louisiana, and also be a resident of the parish-or someone of qualification. A coroner can make at least $140,000 to $160,000 per year. The average salary is $75,000 a year for a coroner. You can make pretty good money being a coroner. Just remember to stay optimistic and that interaction with the loved ones of the deceased is a delicate matter that must be dealt with calmly and professionally. “It takes a certain type of individual to work in the profession, it truly does.” (www.homicide.latimes.com)
The kings of the middle ages initially created the position of a coroner to investigate the suspicious deaths of people and also to collect the death tax on the deceased’s estate. In the United States, we have two positions that work in the field of death investigating, obviously the coroner and the medical examiner. These positions are widely different in how they run. To be a medical examiner, one must have many years of experience in medical school, and they must be board-approved. However, for a coroner’s position, the people in the state elect a campaigning candidate, and that candidate does not need to have any medical experience. Both of these positions perform autopsies and deal with the suspiciously deceased, however they both have incredibly different requirements. Over the past decade, the necessity of the coroner’s position came into discussion among the field. According to those who wish to kill the job, the coroner’s position does not seem to have sufficient standards for all that the job entails. However, eliminating the coroner jobs from the departments will be tremendously inefficient for all the people involved in that
...urvivors and any of these people may taint the process by providing “biased” recollections. The most commonly cited limitation or weakness of psychological autopsies is the lack of any standardized procedures for conducting them (Roberts & Baker, 2009, Psychological Autopsy, Limitations of Psychological Autopsies section, para.2). Although psychologists have developed a standardized guide with twenty-six categories to assist investigators in conducting psychological autopsies, not all of the categories are applicable to every case or are considered by every psychologist conducting a psychological autopsy (Roberts & Baker, 2009, Psychological Autopsy, Limitations of Psychological Autopsies section, para.2). Lacks, Westveer, Dibble and Clemente (2008) question its validity and reliability as the accuracy of equivocal death analysis has not been empirically studied.
“In most human society's death is an extremely important cultural and social phenomenon, sometimes more important than birth” (Ohnuki-Tierney, Angrosino, & Daar et al. 1994). In the United States of America, when a body dies it is cherished, mourned over, and given respect by the ones that knew the person. It is sent to the morgue and from there the family decides how the body should be buried or cremated based on...
In all cases in which the cause of death cannot be determined, a medico-legal autopsy is done. In a nutshell, a medico-legal autopsy serves to help explain a legal question surrounding the death in question e.g. is the manner of death natural, unnatural or undetermined? Was someone else involved? What were the circumstances leading to death? Therefore, in addition to the results and findings of the autopsy, other findings such as those from the crime scene also play big role in helping to determine what really happened.
Crime scene investigators, also known as CSIs, have played an essential role in protecting citizens, by proving who is guilty, and who is innocent. CSIs use a large amount of Science and Math skills to solve crimes, resulting in a decent income. They are specialized in forensic science in order to examine crime scenes and recover important evidence (Career Cruising).
Instead, state governments should provide more funding and training for county coroner’s so they can do their jobs well with the proper facilities and equipment. Coroners are important elected officials and should not be replaced by appointed medical examiners who are not accountable to the public (“Coroners and Forensic Science”). Electing coroners with little medical experience and allowing them to perform autopsies with no real regulatory oversight is a deeply flawed and outdated method for conducting death investigations. As stated in the article, “autopsies should be performed only by licensed physicians, preferably those specializing in forensic pathology, and in offices run by certified medical examiners (“Coroners and Forensic Science”).” Furthermore, the U.S. should have a federal department that can impose a uniform set of standards for death investigation in every county, instead of the confusing hodgepodge of systems it has
According to Bureau of Labor Statistics, Forensic Technicians observe and go over the crime scene. They also determine evidence that should be collected. You take pictures of the crime sight and the evidence you would be collecting. Techs also have to make sketches of the scene, They perform analyses on whatever was collected. Look at leads on suspects by using the data from the analysis. (“What They Do”) Forensic Techs are mainly the people that do all the technical touchy touchy work at the scene. They take the bodies and test it for prints. The Technicians check for foul play on the body so they know how you died. That’s mainly what Forensic Technicians do.
2. Kirsch, Laura. “Diagnosis: DEATH.” Forensic Examiner 15.2 (2006): 52-54. Criminal Justice Periodicals. ProQuest. USF Mears Library, Sioux Falls, SD. 24 Apr. 2008 http://www.proquest.com/
Forensic pathologists are the people who determine the cause and time of death if the deceased person died under suspicious circumstances, whether they be violent or not. They determine if the death was accidental, a homicide, natural, a suicide, or even if the cause of death was unknown. They do this by studying said victim’s medical history, evaluating the crime scene for evidence, studying the body for any clues, and performing an autopsy. After determining the cause, time, and the manner in which the victim died, forensic pathologists make a written report on the victim and sometimes testify in court to report their findings.
Nevertheless, willing donations are scarce, recently DMV’s have incorporated the option of choosing whether to donate or not donate when obtaining a permit or license. Bringing attention towards this question is fundamental to obtain more registered donors because some people lack the knowledge of how to become donor. Hence, once a person has died without registering to be a donor there is not much that could be done unless a family member accountable for the person agrees on doing so. Not every donor qualifies to donate, depending on the gravitude of the incident in which their death
Imagine yourself as a mortician, certified as an embalmer, retort operator, funeral director, and a funeral cosmetologist. You get a call late at night, there’s been a terrible accident and someone has died. You arrive at the hospital and are directed to a small room where the body of the deceased is being held. There’s blood all over the sheets as the doctor and coronary assistant zip up the body bag and inform you the body was badly mangled in a car accident, which is going to make reconstructing the deceased very difficult. Your assistant puts the body on the stretcher and loads it into the hearse while you talk to the wife of the deceased man. She tells you they plan to have a funeral so you give her your card and a reassuring word before leaving the hospital and driving back to the funeral home. Now your job begins, not only will you have to reconstruct this man’s disfigured body, but you must meet with the family, discuss funeral arrangements, and deal with the family’s emotional trauma that comes with losing a loved one. Although working in the funeral business can be emotionally draining, it’s a satisfying feeling to see mourning families able to say goodbye to their loved ones. Despite the fact that working so closely with the deceased can be chilling, Mortuary science can be a thrilling field to work in.
Introduction I. A career that I have always been interested in is forensic anthropology. Well, you can’t consider it always it actually all started with a TV show that my parents watch way too much, Bones. Bones is about a forensic anthropologist who helps the Jeffersonian solve murder cases. She is the best forensic anthropologist in the world and as she solves all of these cases she displays her ability to learn to adapt and solve riddles at a ridiculous rate. This gave me an unrealistic fantasy about how amazing and fast paced the job is so, I chose this topic to bring that fantasy into something more realistic and maybe if I work hard enough I can make it a reality. So to make it more realistic I will outline my path to get there following three main points the career information, the schooling requirements and my future lifestyle. This might just make me one step closer to changing this fantasy into reality.
Most people dismiss anything having to do with death out of fear. The uncertainty some associate with death has caused Funeral Service to be a particularly taboo subject in society. One may assume funeral directors are the sketchy personalities enthralled with death, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Over the years, Funeral Service has progressed and become a larger industry. Funeral Service has changed in its history over time, affecting the education required, and the job they do today.
Maio, V. D. (2003). Medicolegal death investigation system: workshop summary. Washington, D.C.: National Academies Press.
President's Commission for the Study of Ethical Problems in Medicine and Biomedical and Behavioral Research. Defining Death: A Report on the Medical, Legal and Ethical Issues in the Determination of Death. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1981.