Topical Blog: Autopsies Due 9/29 @ midnight

In the autopsy websites we looked over there was a lot of information to take in. Autopsy means “to see for one’s self”. This procedure has been done since the 5th century before Christ. The procedure mostly used today was developed in Germany. Those that perform autopsies are called pathologist. The do at least 4 years of training after medical school, and 1 to 2 more years of anatomic pathology training if they wish to do forensics. Autopsies are useful in death for many reasons; here are just a few: to determine time and manner of death, collect evidence, determine evidence of malpractice, look for disease, help in discovering disease, to identify body if long deceased, search for lost objects, settle death and liability claims. The family, attending physician, hospital and government can all ask for a autopsy to be done. The family (next of kin) has to sign off on autopsies unless ordered by the government because of suspicion of foul play, judicial purposes, public health concerns, the person dies unattended by physician, or the attending physician is uncomfortable signing the death certificate. The time it takes to complete an autopsy is approximately 30-45 days, if the case is uncomplicated. One if four autopsies will discover a major disease that was unknown to the person in life. This does not mean that ¼ diseases discovered are the cause of death though.

There are four steps to an autopsy. Step one is to examine the exterior of the body. The clothes, skin, etc. for signs of injury or violence. In criminal cases this is one of the most important parts of the procedure. Samples are taken from fingernails, hands etc. If wounds are present the examination of these can tell a lot about the nature of the crime. Step two involves the examination of the position and appearance of the internal organs. Step three examines the internal organs by dissecting them. This can be important in criminal cases as well. In step four, different tissues, fluid and other specimens that may be found in and on the body are sent to the lab for analysis. This can help in cases where poisoning, rape, etc. may have occurred. Autopsies can take place at any point after death. Even if the body has been at the funeral home and embalmed. It can occur years after death too. Most hospitals like to start the procedure within two hours of the death though. Most autopsies are done for free. If a fee is presented in hospital, where the death occurred, you should question it. They may present you with a fee to try and prevent you from doing an autopsy because of liability claims that may come out of it, because of some wrongdoing by the hospital or attending doctor.

What I found most interesting was just the idea and purpose of autopsies. I would have wanted to claim any of the reason that people who reject them, would use. Their body has been through enough. I want them whole. These types of rationalizations hinder the medical fields ability to learn, grow, and develop.

I was surprised by the fact that one in four autopsies will discover a disease that was unknown to the deceased before. While this doesn’t mean it was the cause of death, it is very helpful for the future. Autopsies that discover these hidden diseases might aid in developing a way in which to screen for them. I was also surprised that 34% of England’s autopsies reveal that the cause of death was different from what the attending physician said was the cause. That is crazy.

I’m definitely not interested in learning more about procedural process of autopsies. This blog’s information was enough for me. What I am more interested in is our national statistics on autopsies. How many people receive them? How many of them prove the physician’s cause of death to be wrong?
http://health.usnews.com/health-news/family-health/articles/2011/08/04/numbers-of-autopsies-performed-in-us-falls
This article was the best I could find that claims to contain facts released by the federal government. I however, in my search could not find any links directly to the federal government for this information. This article states that only 1 in 10 people (8.5%) who die receive an autopsy now. That is a 58% drop in the last 35 years. It did not provide information as to how many autopsies prove physicians to be wrong. One interesting thing I pulled from the article was that one of the top reasons in 2007 that autopsies were performed was because of childbirth and puerperium.

Psychology might be of importance in counseling the family of the autopsied body. The many reasons that people give for not wanting to do the autopsy, minus religion, are things that I think could be, or should be, addressed with some counseling. Also, the autopsy of the brain could be of great importance in psychology. If known or suspected mental problems existed, perhaps autopsies of the brain can help us in our knowledge, prognosis, and treatment, in the future of those problems.

I am a whimp when it comes to blood and guts, so I could not gather enough inner strength to watch the real life autopsy. However, I did read the links provided, as well as play the interactive autopsy to try and determine the cause of death.

When reading through all these different links, I discovered that autopsy specifially means, "see for yourself." An autopsy is a special surgical operation performed by specially trained physicians, called pathologists, on a dead body. The truth in doing this is to uncover the truth about this persons life, and specific cause of death. Autopsies represent the ultimate quality assurance mechanism available in the field of medicine. Therefore, it is only just to say that autopsies, as disturbing as they may be, are very useful and improve the quality of care the medical staff can provide. Furthermore, I also learned the different legalistics that go hand in hand with autopsies. For example, the government can request any specific person to have an autopsy if the deem fit. In addition, at a hospital, a family can request an autopsy to assure them in the actual cause of death. However, autopsies are not required by law and the legal next-of-kin has to sign an autopsy permit. Although I did not have the guts to watch the video, one of the links had a cartoon depiction of the steps in an autopsy where I learned about the procedures and dissections involved in an autopsy.

The thing I found most interesting was the fact that pathologists had to go for at least 4 years of training after medical school, and 1 to 2 more years of anatomic pathology training if they wish to practice in the field of forensics. I guess I found this interesting, because it seems as though a pathologist, or doctor who performs autopsies on dead people, is in school longer than a normal, "check-up," doctor, or one who practices on the living and breathing.

The thing I found the most suprising was the fact that even after an autopsy is performed, the family can still have an open-casket funeral. I also read that even after the body is embalmed, the pathologist can perform an autopsy. I guess I found this so alarming, because of the procedures of performing an autopsy I read about. The pathologist basically takes out every major organ, and even the smaller ones, to examine, dissect, and test. Then, they either cremate the organs or put parts of them back inside the cavity and stitch the body back up. Also, the pathologist has to cut off the top of the skull to remove the brain, so it shocked me that one could still have an open casket funeral after all of that. I assume that pathologists try and make less noticable incisions I suppose, but it still suprises me.

After reading about autopsies, I can honestly tell you that I found it very interesting, but there is nothing more I want to learn about it. I am way to squeamish to try and divulge myself into this gruesome, yet unveiling practice.

I think the most influential role psychology plays in autopsies is by discovering the true cause of death, that may help bring some closure to the families involved. Also, a dead body never lies. By uncovering the truth about a person through their autopsy, the detectives involved may have better leads and clues to the insight of the person shortly before their time of death, instead of just trusting their word or the words of others. Furthermore, in older psychological practices, sections of the brain played a huge role in the way a person acted or their level of aggression. This is where lobotomies stemmed from. We are not that barbaric anymore thankfully, yet we have linked different parts of the brain to different functions and emotions, so I have to think that being able to grasp and physically look at a person's brain might shed more light into their personality or possible impairments.

Lindsey Fails

One of the the first things I learned from reading is that I honestly thought an autopsy was always done, but learned it is a choice of the family and not always done. I also learned that specific questions have to be asked to learn those answers, there is not a magic test that tells all. If you want to know if a person was poisoned with something specific, they have to be tested specifically for that. Seeing the interactive autopsy and the etopic pregnancy was sad, not too much grosses me out, so it wasn’t gross at all to me, but very sad. I was also shocked to find that one in four autopsies finds a disease that was unknown during life. That seems awfully high. I also learned that autopsies are done in a very respectful and peaceful manner. I have heard some people say things like, “What kind of people would do autopsies? Or what kind of people would work with dead people.” When really, it is usually a very spiritual and respectful person, a doctor, and someone who everyone can trust with their loved ones remains. I am in the computer lab right now so I am not going to watch the autopsy, but when I get home I will be watching and commenting. Wanted to get this posted for now though.

I thought I could watch the video of the real autopsy, so I decided to give it a try. It was really gross because I have never really seen anything like this before, and also probably due to the fact that I know this is a real person. The video was interesting in that they were explaining as they went along, describing what they thought the cause of death was and also what they were doing to the cadaver. I thought them explaining looking for an appendix as an identifying feature was interesting. I guess you need to use any way you can to determine the identity of the victim by eliminating others using identifying characteristics, i.e. a missing appendix. Another thing that would make this girl more identifiable would be her breast implants. These are something that could help set her apart from others. I thought the sound of them cutting her ribs to pull back the chest plate were particularly disturbing. I did like how they explained what they were looking for in the heart and lungs to see if she died from some sort of clot. I also thought it was good of them to explain that the clot they pulled out was post-mortem. Since I have no prior knowledge about anything thing related to this practice or a whole lot of knowledge about the human body for that matter, I think they way they explained things were very clear and precise, except for some long medical terms here and there. The most disgusting part of this whole video was them cutting open her skull and taking her brain and taking out the membrane that lines the skull. I never did think I would see anything like that in my lifetime, and needless to say I’ll be fine if I never have to watch that again. No matter how gross the video was, I realized how important autopsies are to determining the cause of death for insurance or closure purposes. I learned that I could never get paid enough to do this profession, and it made me wonder how much they really do get paid.

I thought it was interesting that they removed all the organs one by one for closer examination. I figured out how important it must be to look in every place possible to find the cause of death since some causes are not as obvious as others. I also thought it was interesting that they did the same with some of the tissues in the body, like the tissue samples they take from the heart.

The most surprising thing about this for me was how much damage the do to the body. I guess I always pictured it a little less, well mutilating for lack of a better word. She didn’t even look like a person anymore, and I wondered how they can even make them look halfway normal again for the funeral.

I decided to look up two things: how much medical examiners (forensic pathologist) get paid and how they get the bodies back together without looking so horrible. I found that medical examiners get paid “$60,000 to $180,000, depending on experience, geographical area, and level of responsibility”. This may be enough for the people who do this job, but it’s not even close to what I would take to do it! I also found a website that explains you can view the body after an autopsy is complete. They state, “The autopsy is a surgical procedure and does not maim the body. Extreme care and respect is taken with the body so as not to interfere with the viewing process. [Medical] staff consults with the funeral director at the funeral home to make sure the family is not affected at a viewing.” I found this to be surprising that they can take a body they completely mutilate and return it to a stage of somewhat normalcy. I think this is good though because it will help to be less traumatizing for the families and allow the funeral to be normal.

http://www.emphasis-technography.com/nas/page3.htm
http://web2.iadfw.net/uthman/forensic_career.html

I also took it upon myself to try the website and read the cases and then try to determine the cause of death. What I learned from this website was that I know nothing at all about how to determine a cause of death!

I think psychology may shed some light in this type of crime investigation by providing closure to the families of victims who may not know what happened to them. They can receive counseling and go through a more normal grief process because they will not always have to wonder what happened to their loved one. I also think autopsies could be beneficial to studying of the human brain or body and looking for particular problems that persist in either defects or impairments that make people more prone to being criminal. If we know what to look for, maybe we can find it in others and intervene early if there is a solution to the problem. Psychology may also shed some light in determining the circumstances around a death like how the person died and what happened leading up to their death.

The University of Iowa link was very informational about the basics of the autopsy. It was very neat to see the different definitions and procedures that someone in the field would need to know. Me personally, I do not think I could even be able to perform an autopsy. It would be an incredible job that requires little emotional ties. I thought it was interesting that the family can choose if they even want an autopsy done or not and it is of no cost to them.

The link to the autopsy photos were rather disturbing. It is cool to see how that stuff works, but for me I do not understand it. I would not be able to be in the profession simply because I don't think I could understand it. The step by step procedures given in the next link were very interesting. I did not know there was that much preciseness but it makes complete sense. If one mistake is made it could mislead the whole autopsy and give false information.

The video was very disturbing, I only watched the first part. I don't understand how somebody could handle to human body as if it was a box they were cutting open. I believe it takes a certain type of person to be able to handle to stress and gore of cutting open a dead body.

I know that when it comes to an autopsy, it is mostly hard, scientific facts, but psychology also play a role. After examining a dead body a finding out why or how it died, the next most important step is to figure out WHY they died in that manor. You can not do that without bringing psychology into the matter.

Autopsies are used to determine cause of death, "ensure quality control in medical practice, help confirm the presence of new diseases, educate physicians, and investigate criminal activity," according to The Encyclopedia on Death and Dying's article "Autopsy". I began by playing around the interactive autopsy site. I looked through two cases. The first was a woman who died of an ectopic pregnancy (which I correctly diagnosed). The image of the actual fetus attached to the woman's Fallopian tubes was, I'll admit, creepy. But then, all fetuses look creepy until their birthed (and even then they sometimes aren't cute). The second was an elderly woman who died of a brain hemorrhage; I guessed that one too. Then I proceeded to the autopsy on video. I fascinated and slightly grossed out at the same time. I've never been perturbed by graphic images of surgery or organs, but I am human, and like any human I am instinctually turned off the inside of the body. I did find it comical, however, when the pathologist pulled out the decedent's breast implant, displayed it to the class (it sounded like there were observers in the background), and then shoved it right back into her chest. When I traveled to the site describing how to properly perform an autopsy, I learned that 1/3 of decedents' autopsy and clinic diagnoses differ. In the article where this post's opening quote originates, I discovered that autopsies can go fast or slow depending on whether the pathologists remove the internal organs sequentially or "en bloc" (all at once in one chunk). Removing them en bloc allows the body to be released to the mortician only a half an hour after the autopsy begins.

During the video, I learned something interesting. The narrator said that you can distinguish between the lungs by looking at the number of lobes. The left lung has two lobes while the right one has three. The amount of lobes can vary, up to five lobes, but generally speaking, the left having two and the right having three is the norm.

I found a couple of things surprising. First, I was amazed and the precision and speed of the pathologists as they dissected the woman in the video. Not to be disturbing, but I see people struggle to carve turkey and ham almost every day at work, let alone an entire human body. Second, one case out of four pathologists discover a major disease that the decedent had that he/she or the family never knew about. That implies that 25% of us are wandering around with some major disease that we may never know about!

I chose to research the first New World autopsy in 1533. It was performed to determine whether two female Siamese twins had two souls or only one. When the girls were born, they were baptized as two separate souls, but dissension ensued and when they died eight days later, "an autopsy was ordered to settle the issue" (http://books.google.com/books?id=8dkuoAz9-WMC&pg=PA192&lpg=PA192&dq=1533+first+new+world+autopsy&source=bl&ots=B_f0cRf7NB&sig=FHpiGm7dVE32R9kzqoix0jd59sU&hl=en&ei=wN-ETrO-F--BsgLvr4CzDw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&ved=0CDsQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=1533%20first%20new%20world%20autopsy&f=false). When the twins were dissected, the pathologists discovered two sets of working organs, with the exception of the girls' livers. They were joined, but a crease could be seen where they separated into each of the infants' livers. It was determined that the girls indeed had two souls because they could do independent acts while alive (one would cry while the other didn't, or sleep, or defecate) and they each had their own set of organs.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1807498/?page=2

It took me a while to think of ways that psychology could play a role in autopsies, since autopsies are almost entirely biological. But an autopsy of the brain provides a ton of knowledge about its functions and how it connects to the concepts of psychology; like emotion, memory, and sensation and perception. On top of that, what are the emotional implications of being an anatomy pathologist? In the video, the pathologists appeared completely emotionally detached from the decedent. I understand that you have to do that in a job like this, but what happens to them emotionally? Do they become desensitized in a way to things that would frighten the general public? Can they connect properly with people who aren't exposed to things like that? I'm sure they can, but it's interesting to consider.

The links that were provided were all pretty interesting. In an attempt at a summary, there are two ways to have an autopsy performed, either the ME can order it in which case the family of the deceased has no discretion in the mater or a voluntary autopsy can be performed where either the family requests the autopsy or the physician encourages and convinces the family to acquiesce. The entire process of the autopsy can take up to a month and this length of time often discourages families from volunteering their loved one for an autopsy. Autopsies seem to be a very worthwhile practice, though, as all of the links seemed to share the opinion that much is often learned during them.

The procedure for carrying out the autopsy seems to be a well developed one in which an order of operations of sort is performed. I was familiar with the Y shaped incision that is first made from fake autopsies I have seen on television but it was interesting to read about all of the detailed steps the pathologists take. As the pathologists perform the autopsy that take samples of the organs and body tissues. These samples are then preserved and stored for a period ranging from 5 to 20 years. After the body has been dissected and inspected the major organs are replaced in the body cavity and it is sewn up for the funeral procession. I was surprised to read that they can cover all of the scars of the procedure so that an open casket can still be performed.

Some of the more interesting things that I learned included the fact that I didn't realize that autopsies for learning purposes had been performed as far back as the 5th century B.C. by the Greeks and that the Egyptians used autopsies to teach anatomy in the 3rd and 4th centuries B.C. I also found it interesting that the first autopsy performed in the new world was undertaken in order to find out if Siamese twins had two souls. (Since when can you dissect a soul? But I guess it was the middle ages). Also, I didn't know that the position of coroner was a political one. I always thought that a coroner and a medical examiner were essentially the same thing. Finally, I found it extremely interesting that from 25% to 33% of the time, autopsies revealed that the physicians diagnoses were incorrect.

What I found to be the most interesting and also the most disturbing thing was the video of the autopsy. I watched it start to finish but it sure was disgusting. Quite frankly, I thought the process would be more respectful to the deceased than what it was. This is going to be a rather macabre analogy but it looked more like they were butchering the body than performing a scientific investigation as to the cause of death. I don't know why, but I found the ease and speed with which they performed the dissection to be somewhat troubling. It almost seemed like they were rushing through it. Before watching that video I would have considered allowing an autopsy to be performed on a loved one, after watching it, I am pretty sure that I wouldn't allow it.

I would like to learn more about just how much autopsies help investigators solve crimes. Do autopsies usually produce leads that investigators can follow? For instance, in what percentage of cases do autopsies provide clues that lead the authorities to the criminal? Also, how do families typically react when they are told that an autopsy is going to be performed on their loved one and that they have no choice in the matter?

I really don't know how psychology could shine some light on this type of investigation. I could see psychological research being performed on family members to see what psychological impact the autopsy had on their sense of loss and grief. If they felt that the body had been mutilated or disrespected in the process. Psychology might have a role in understanding why certain individuals do not want to have autopsies performed on their loved ones and in the process of learning about their misgivings develop some methods that help the family members better accept the process? Also, I could see research potential in analyzing how jurors would react to autopsy evidence. I am not for sure if I am answering the question correctly but those are few ways I could see psychology and the practice intermixing.

The human body is a fascinating and complex organism. Its amazing how every little cell and tissue in our body works together to create homeostasis. However, when something goes wrong in our body we may be able to feel the pain but we don't know for sure what exactly is going wrong. When cause of death may be unknown or needs further investigation, we use autopsies to attempt to give a clue on how the person had died.
I watched the live autopsy and I found it very interesting. It didn't really gross me out, I hunt and even though a deer and a human are different, both kinda look the same from the inside. I found it surprising how in depth the autopsy was. Instead of deducting from symptoms of cause of death, it seemed like the autopsy is more cut now and ask questions later. Overall, I found it intriguing

I was always very interested in the topic autopsy. However, I never really did much research about it. It was very interesting to do this now. After reading through all the given literature on the topic I can say that I was not aware of most of the information before. The word autopsy is Greek and means "see for yourself". I got to understand that autopsies are not only helpful when something went wrong but that it is always helpful to do an autopsy as the primary purpose of an autopsy is to improve the quality of care that is provided in the practice of medicine. Also the difference between a coroner and a pathologist was new to me as the pathologist is a physician with a specialty in the scientific study of body parts.
The autopsy process is more formal and official than I thought it to be (example: “The autopsy service cannot answer questions that you may have concerning your patient’s disease processes unless you communicate your questions in the appropriate area of the H-4 form.”).
I really liked the interactive cadaver site. It was very interesting to go through the different links, look at the pictures and read about the findings. I especially liked trying to find out the cause of death yourself. After the case with the 25 year old woman, which I found to be easy, I tried to figure out some more cases.
The web page pathguy.com was helpful in understanding the main principles of an autopsy. This site also made me more curious about the history of autopsy. I started research about this topic online. I looked up Autopsy on Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autopsy) as well as I did a google search. I already knew that the first autopsies started with the early Egyptians. However, I did not know that they were “forbidden” or very rare in many other ancient societies such as the Greeks or Romans. (http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/45129/autopsy/284572/History-of-autopsy; http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1904067/pdf/amjpathol00249-0259.pdf)
I also think that there are some psychological aspects about autopsies. First of all the contact with the families to inform them about the death can be seen as a situation that needs the elements of psychology. Second, I think to deal with death everyday in the job might cause a need of psychology for the pathologist. Also, I can see a relationship or connection in the two words autopsy and psychology. Autopsy means to see for oneself, while psychology means study of the soul. You can say that both fields try to improve the life of the living.

The thing that I learned and was a little surprised about was how a doctor decides to do an autopsy. I just always thought that they did it when they had no idea what killed them but it is a little more complicated than that. The University of Iowa website listed some circumstances where the doctor would push the family to do an autopsy. I kinda figured that they would do an autopsy after a surgery because of malpractice reasons but I didn’t know that they sometimes used these bodies for testing. The really weird thing is that the family probably doesn’t even know. They think that the doctors just want to know how their family member died but the doctors want to figure out why and whether or not it is something that should be looked into for further testing.
The thing that I was most surprised about was the fact that the real life autopsy wasn’t as gruesome as I thought it would be. I figured that since it was a human body it would be kind of disturbing but in all reality it is no different than butchering a deer or squirrel. That really shows that the human body isn’t all that different from other animals. This also leads into how autopsies relate to the field of psychology. How do our brains perform at such higher levels than these animals if our bodies are practically the same?
The thing that I want to learn more about is how someone gets into this field. It’s not every kids dream to grow up and dissect human bodies. That must have encountered something in their life or schooling that made them decide to do such a job.

Performing autopsies is a 24/7/365 job. You have to perform the autopsy no more than a week after the death in most cases. One important thing is that you get permission from the family. It is not acceptable to get permission just by them saying “OK” over the phone. They must submit their permission through fax. The pathologist are also responsible for filling out the death certificate and finding answers to terms like “cause of death,” “immediate cause of death,” and “mechanism or mode of death.” Sometimes performing an autopsy can mean finding out diseases that the person may have had but no one knew about. This can be useful information to the family because now they are aware of a potential health risk for themselves.

The steps to an autopsy goes something like this. First, the outside of the body is examined and marked so the spots can be gone back to if needed. Then, the body is cut in the shape of a “Y” so it goes from the tips of both shoulders and then the incisions meet and go down the middle. Then, the organs are taking out, inspected, and for the most important ones, weighed.

I tried to watch the live autopsy and got about 3 and a half seconds into it. I really thought I would be able to watch it but when I saw him just slice the dead person’s body open like it was no big deal it freaked me out. Other than that, what was most surprising to me was how many people can perform an autopsy. I guess I always just thought that they were sent to this one special place to get it done and then that was it (like the basement of a hospital). What I learned and what I also thought was interesting is that the pathologist puts there chest bones back in and just sews them up when I always thought the body was just stuffed with something. I also thought it was interesting how they called it the baseball stitch.

I think it could relate to psychology because to be a pathologist you would have to be a certain type of person. To be a surgeon and to help save the life of an already living person is one thing but to take apart a dead person’s body is another. You could definitely say their behavior deviates from society because performing autopsies is definitely not the norm.

This assignment was one of, if not, the best thing I have had to do since coming to college. I am kind of into this type of thing and I thought it was awesome to watch an autopsy. I learned a lot of things. One was that they do autopsies for more reasons than just to find out how someone died. All of the texts that we were required to read said something about how in almost every autopsy performed we learn something new about the person that we did not know when they were alive. Whether that be an addiction, disease, or what have you. Through the text that gave to order of procedures I learned that it is a method. They just don't go into the room and look at an area they think would have been affected. They look at everything, shown more clearly by the video. I was very surprised that we find out so much just through an autopsy. With today's modern medical technology, most of us would like to think that there is no way we could miss something like a disease. I was also amazed that we do not perform many autopsies. If i recall correctly, I think one of the text said that it was only 12% of medical deaths are autopsied.
There is a lot to know about autopsies in general but one thing that would be cool to know more about it the people that perform them. I am sure they see a bunch of stuff that a great majority of people never get to see. It would be cool to get to talk to someone who has done a bunch of them. I think it would be cool to figure out how they get that job. I have no idea if you can walk in somewhere and say "Hey I want to be the person who does the autopsies."
The psychology aspect was hard for me to quite figure out. This procedure seems pretty scientific. However, when they study the brain they can learn more about how illness affects the brain or how the brain can affect illness. We could also associate psychology with aiding the family. After people lose loved ones,they can often times be unstable and talk to a psychologist anyway.

I definitely learned a lot during this exercise of learning about autopsies. First and foremost, autopsies are useful for many different reasons. Clearly, an autopsy is useful when the cause of death is in doubt. This happens in many cases in which a random body is found with no significant causes of death. This almost always happens for celebrities who end up getting found dead in an apartment or hotel room. Their bodies have autopsies preformed on them so the cause of death can be determined. In addition, autopsies can help the world of medicine. When somebody dies after being treated in a medical facility, it is good to have an autopsy performed so the physicians know why that individual died. Therefore, hopefully, they will be able to correct/avert that issue in the future. It is also very specific when an autopsy is being granted for a body. The family has the say whether they want an autopsy performed, and there are many constituents involved, which is understandable. The physician in charge of the autopsy has a large responsibility, and the death certificate will reveal the outcome.

The video of the live autopsy was also very educational. It showed how a body is first cut in a “Y” formation, then all of the following steps. This is also the most interesting thing to me. The video showed how the ribs are cut so the heart and lungs can be exposed, how the intestines and all other organs in the abdomen area are removed, along with how the head is (for a lack of better terms) disassembled. This was the most surprising to me. I had no idea that the optical sensors did such a job of holding onto the brain. Also, the tough matter between the brain and the face was also interesting. I was really surprised at how easily the hair was removed from the scalp, and I did know that a saw was used to open the top of the skull. The head part of the autopsy was most interesting and surprising.

I definitely want to know more about what factors are looked into when an autopsy is performed, much like the interactive website showed. It told how things such as the heart and other organs looked normal, weighed normally, etc… I think it would be interesting to know certain things to look for that are “out of the norm”, so maybe a cause of death is easily identified. When it comes to psychology and autopsies, the main thing that comes to mind is the physician who performs the autopsy, and how psychologically “sound” they have to be. These people have to be comfortable doing many things that most humans wouldn’t ever do. This was all very interesting!

I thought that about the reading about the autopsy procedures was very interesting. I had no idea the amount of paperwork that is involved in this processes. I thought that it was interesting that medical doctors are pressured to try to gain rights to autopsy for certain deaths as a need for medical study. Physicians are asked to take special interest in deaths that result within the week of operation of invasive surgery, deaths under anesthesia, maternal postpartum deaths and others. The death certificate is filled out by the funeral home that is handling the funeral. The person who performs the autopsy cannot by legal definition describe the manner of death from examination of the body. The manner of death is described by the circumstances that surround the death. The other web page showed all of the major organs after they have been removed from the body for examination. The examination of organs can tell a lot about a persons life and possibly what caused their death.
The video of the body was very interesting and somewhat disturbing. The part when the doctor uses the large bolt like cutters to cut the rib cage was interesting, because u think they would have a special type of tool to use rather then something that looks like they bought it at a store like Menards. It was weird to me that they treated the body like it was almost like a animal and never a person, but I understand that in a field like that you need to have a good ability to deal with the details of there job.
I was interested to see how much medical examiners are paid each year, and how often they perform examinations for law enforcement agencies. So I looked up some websites.

http://medicalexaminersalary.org/

http://www.co.pinellas.fl.us/forensics/faq/faq.htm

After reading the autopsy articles and watching the video I decided that my favorite article was the one from the University of Iowa. The reason for this is because it gave me an insight into how autopsys operate and different terms associated with them. From reading this it was one of my favorite articles because it gave some definitions and helped to make a link between autopsys and the terminology associated with them.
The thing that I liked least about this assignment was the real autopsy report. It sounds stupid because it said that we could watch it if we wanted to, I didn't want to see somebody get cut open but I felt obligated to. It was interesting how they did the autopsy but I felt like they would put more caution into it. Right away they basically cut the person in half (well a Y shape) which really shocked me.
What I want to learn more about would be how someone becomes qualified to be an autopsy coroner person. I learned that people who want to become a coroner have to be qualified as a licensed physician and have training in forensic pathology. This was just an interesting thought to me because I never understood why someone would grow up wanting to play with dead bodies. But after reading more and seeing the criminology side in it its a very interesting profession.
http://education-portal.com/how_to_become_a_medical_examiner.html

I tried to watch the actual autopsy and I got through some of it but it just got to be too much for me. The part that I did watch was pretty interesting. An autopsy can be very useful and very helpful to figure out how a person had died or was murdered. Also, for medical reasons, like if a person dies that is on a certain medicine they can tell if it was because of it or not. The video of the autopsy showed how they cut the body open a certain way and then the organs are things are taken out to be examined. After the Y incision is made then they make another one on the head behind the ears. They stated that when its sewn back up it will be covered up by the pillow. Then while reading I learned they examined the body before they did any cutting into the body. I just really couldn't believe that this was actual peoples jobs. It was just way too much for me to even watch and they cut the person open like it was nothing at all.
While reading the University of Iowa link and reading the information there was surprising to me. I didnt know a lot of it at all and I learned all this new information. The family can say yes over the phone to an autopsy but then they have to also send via fax to do the autopsy too, just over the phone isnt enough and the autopsy wont be done unless there is a fax too. To be able for them to do an autopsy the body has to be sent to them within one week of the death of the person. While reading the next text I learned there are tons of things you can learn from an autopsy that you wouldnt of known other wise. How to cut the person open, who does the actual autopsy, where they are done, and the reasons someone might want there to be an autopsy on a certain person.
Psychology plays a role in autopsy because of the family. The reason the autopsy is being done maybe because of a murder or it just may help the family out for closure and know exactly what happened to their loved one. Then also the study of the brain, knowing if they had any mental problems or if they were on drugs and how it was affecting there mind process. I feel the brain is the most important part of the autopsy with psychology.

For this activity I went through all of the available links but I spent the most time on the live autopsy video as well as the "determine cause of death activity" because I found these portions to be the most interesting and informative.
I was very impressed by the skill of the pathologists in performing the autopsy. I found it very interesting at how quickly they could disassemble and analyze all of the different portions of the subject and the amount of information they were able to obtain from their various observations. I thought it was also interesting too see the exact framework that this particular pathologist had in regards to how the autopsy was to be performed. Everything was done in a precise way and in a precise order to ensure the accuracy and integrity of the results. I do wish that we had been able to see the remainder of the procedure so as not to miss out on some of the experience and the end result.
The online activity to determine cause of death was also very interesting. I work as a paramedic for the Red Cross in my spare time and I have always found diagnostic mysteries to be very engaging. This is one of the best activities that I have done this semester.
I would like to learn more about the end results that are obtained from an autopsy and how those results are used in the criminal justice system. I think it would be very interesting to see a medical examiner testify during a trial or be able to read and study a medical examiner's findings. This is part of the criminal justice system that is rarely portrayed in the Hollywood settings and is often something that people avoid thinking about but it is an important part of our criminal justice system.
In the criminal justice field, psychology and pathology are certainly linked. While the pathologist will use the physical condition of the subject to determine cause of death and other pieces of trace evidence, the psychologist can use the physical condition of the subject to determine a perpetrators behavior (ex. was the attack calm and calculated or raged induced, etc). Psychologists can also be involved in the autopsy process by helping to evaluate the impact of this type of evidence on a jury, helping a victims family cope with the event, and assisting the medical examiner to evaluating specific characteristics such as tattoos, bite marks, wounds, etc.

Going through these links dealing with autopsies was a real eye opener for me. After reviewing the first link, I found it interesting that families have to agree to autopsy. If they are told over the phone, it is up to the person discussing the death with the family to let them know that they have to send in permission via fax. Before I read this, I thought that autopsies were routine and that permission wasn’t required. Another thing I was unaware of was the fact that autopsies are of no charge to the family. However, an autopsy request form is a request and permission for an examination; it is not an order for a test. Only state or county medical examiners have the authority to order an autopsy.

I was shocked to look at the twenty-five year old woman in the interactive cadaver. When it showed the ten week old fetus and talked about how she smoked a pack of cigarettes a day and drank, I lost a little respect towards that person. I couldn’t believe what had happened and I guess I really just wanted to know more about her story. Instead, that will have to be left a mystery.

I had viewed the link that talked about how an autopsy is done. However, I was not prepared for what I was about to see in the autopsy video. There were no cartoon guys in green coats or cartoon looking organs, this was real. I honestly couldn’t believe what I was watching and the moments I went to turn away, I would turn back around because of curiosity. One thing in this video that I had written down was the fact that having appendix in place is an identifying feature, I was not aware of this. I thought that this video was not only gut wrenching but very informational and put in perspective the reality to autopsies. I would have to say, it would take a special kind of person to have that job because I know that I couldn’t do it.

I thought each of these links were very informational and surprising at the same time. I’m not sure that I could view another autopsy video though, that was pretty intense. I don’t really have any more questions dealing with autopsies. Something I would like to add though is a link to a book that I read prior to this course. The book is called “Stiff,” by Mary Roach. Here is the link to get more information about this book if you are interested. http://www.maryroach.net/stiff.html

Psychology can help in this type of crime investigation by not only finding the cause of death but by also giving the family some type of closure on how their loved one died. This can also be useful by counseling any close family members or friends helping them deal with the grieving process. Autopsies are extremely helpful in any case because it not only can improve the quality of care that hospitals provide; but can also be beneficial towards learning more about the person, what led to their death, and how possible prevention can be done in future cases.

The video of the autopsy was way gross, but at the same time pretty rad. It was extremely eye opening and gave us a look into a taboo profession and something that is well known about but publicly ignored. The autopsy is designed to investigate the cause of death and often to find evidence of disease or foul play.

There are 4 basic steps to the an autopsy. First, the exterior of the body is inspected. Then, the positioning and appearence are examined. Next, the internal organs are dissected and examined. Finally, tissue, fluid, and other specimen are sent to the laboratory for analysis. After the procedure the body is stitched back together and reformed. It is then cleaned and sent to the funeral director to prepare for the funeral and burial.

I found the whole video interesting. I never thought I'd actually see an autopsy and I don't care if I ever do again. Although it was very eye opening and informative. I figured a lot more care and respect would be shown to the body, instead they kind of just quickly and carelessly rip the body apart. I thought more of an effort would be made to preserve the organs and tissue to disect and investigate them.

I surprised by how beneficial autopsies have been and continue to be for the field of medicine and society in general. from 1950 to 1983 alone, autopsy's have been instrumental in the discovery of 87 diseases or groups of disease. Autopsies are also very useful in educating medical students and they're also good for investigating to make new discoveries.

I wondered how someone could possibly do this for a career. People who do this are called, anatomic pathologists. These people spend four years in college studying this topic, then often continue on to receive a degree in forensic pathology. It takes a special person to be able to do this job. Also someone who is crafty and able to make the body appear as it did prior to the autopsy.

There are a few ways that psychology fits into the topic of autopsy's. After an autopsy is performed the results may bring some closure to the family of the deceased and help with the greiving process. The person who is performing the autopsy has to be completely dettached from the task they are performing. They have to effectively dehumanize the corpse laying in front of them.

I tried to watch the autopsy video, and it didn't go very well. I am a squeamish person to begin with, so I don't know why I thought I could watch a real autopsy. I was only able to watch about 30 seconds of the video.

I was surprised by how quickly they cut into the girl during her autopsy. They didn't take their time or make gentle cuts, they just sliced right into her like a piece of meat. I realize that this is their job and that the medical examiner sees this everyday, but I had hoped there would be more compassion towards the dead at this point.

One thing I didn't know before this assignment was that clinicians are surprised by the autopsy results around 20% of the time.

I also did know before this that there is a difference between a coroner and a medical examiner. A coroner is a public official, while a medical examiner is a psysician. Also, you can always request an autopsy from the hospital that declares the person dead. This is usually done for free, which is another thing I found surprising.

I feel like with psychology we can better understand what the motivations were behind a person's death. I feel like we can also learn why, as a culture, we are concerned about knowing exactly why someone died. Is it our need for closure, to know that it wasn't our fault? Or is it simply because we are curious as a species.

(Sorry this is a few days late, I have been in and out of the hospital all week trying to pass a kidney stone)