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Anyone ever done forensic transcription? - ....autopsies? (see message)

Posted: Jul 02, 2012

Any experience with working for a county coroner's office, doing autopsies? Is it mind-numbing? Extremely difficult? Lots of detailed pathology? Is it something like transcribing a narrative of the physical findings, more like a lab/pathology report, or a combination of both?

I'm wondering if someone who has years of experience as an acute-care hospital transcriptionist (all specialties and work types but no Rad or Path) might be able to do this type of work? I think I transcribed one autopsy report when I was doing the medical transcription program in school about 20 years ago, so I don't remember too much about it.

TIA for any input you can give.

P.S. If you've done this type of work... - ...see message.

[ In Reply To ..]
....is it extremely depressing? I know we all have to keep a slightly removed sensibility from some of the very sad reports we transcribe all the time, but wondering if you find (or found) doing autopsies every day to be emotionally draining?

Havent done it but would LOVE TO!! - totally interesting nm

[ In Reply To ..]
x

I think it would be really interesting - closetdoctor?

[ In Reply To ..]
nm

Not for a coroner, but did - autopsies in the path lab.

[ In Reply To ..]
Work no better or worse than anything else, IMO. What made it interesting is that autopsy room was across the hall from the MTs, and sometimes the docs would let us come in and see them working on their patients.

Me, too, for Pathology. I was just starting out - and it was great to help

[ In Reply To ..]
with anatomy. I even went and watched one autopsy. I guess I am weird. I didn't find it horrible, but I also now LOVE CSI!!! I thought autopsies were more interesting to type than pathology reports actually.

autopsies - pathmt

[ In Reply To ..]
I LOVE doing autopsies - i work in a pathology department and usually get to do all our autopsies because the others don't like them. They can be very detailed but you get a short history, prelimiary anatomic diagnosis, and then gross findings, microscopic findings, any comments and the diagnosis. In our lab it can take up to 30-60 days to complete the report. You are in and out of it a few times before the final diagnosis is done. I'd LOVE to do medical examiner's autopsies - wonder how I'd go about getting a gig like that.

did it 20 years ago - Snow Bunny

[ In Reply To ..]
Now, THAT was a challenge. Both the report content and trying to understand the heavily accented French dictator.

Been there, done that, very boring. - Avoid thinking CSI.

[ In Reply To ..]
Think ER. What do you get there? COPD exacerbations, non-cardiac chest pains, kids with boogers and booboos, etc, and every now and then something a bit more interesting.

It's the same with coroners. Most of it's boring, and now and then a case itself will be interesting, but the autopsy description of bullet entry/exit wounds, knife wounds, etc. really isn't all that exciting. It's NOT like CSI.

Also, the coroner work that I did involved a LOT of microscopic (slide readings) and lab (tox), so you'd really need to be on your toes with the micro path.

I love ER work,,,some humerous stuff comes through there - hate OPS same old same old

[ In Reply To ..]
I guess as with everything we all have our likes and dislikes..I think pathology would be a nice change..

Yeah, now and then, but not that often. Mostly drug abusers, rule out MI, OB and - kids falling off skateboards. nm

[ In Reply To ..]
x

jumping out of the 26th floor, jumping under the subway ... nm - Snow Bunny

[ In Reply To ..]
.

I did say you get something interesting "now and then". - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
Here was the point I was making:

There's television "ER" and there's the real ER, and the real ER ain't much like the television ER. Real ERs mostly deal with a ton of boring stuff for every ounce of anything interesting. Hence, someone who wants to do ER reports should NOT think they're going to be living in television land.

It's just the same with "coroner" work. It's not CSI and there's a lot of boring, tedious transcription. Every now and then a case (itself) is interesting, but even then the autopsy report itself is not necessarily that fascinating. You'll a paragraph with some interesting descriptive material about the circumstances, and then it's pretty much just another boring autopsy.

I used to laugh at the character Jack Klugman played when he was a coroner, running around playing detective and solving cases (usually because the police were too stupid to figure things out for themselves). To real-life coroners and anyone who worked with them, the show was a comedy, along the lines of Monty Python's Flying Circus.

You should know path first. - CountyMEMT

[ In Reply To ..]
For a few years I did autopsies for the county medical examiner.

You should have *mastered* pathology (especially the micro) before embarking on doing that kind of transcription.

Good luck!

Yeah - the point I made. Autopsies involve a lot of anatomy, gross path. - and micro path.

[ In Reply To ..]
Truly, no matter how the deceased died, the autopsy isn't going to be some thrill ride, aside from some preamble information about the circumstances (or "manner" )of death - and most of the time that isn't interesting.

Then they can go on for pages, describing in stupefying detail the condition of each and every organ, the vessels, each and every tissue sample taken, etc.

And, usually around a week later or so, you'll transcribe a followup path report with the tox results and more stupefying detail as he reads the tissue slides. For this work, you need to understand both cytology and histopath terminology, and believe me this is world all its own.

Oh - and one other thing: My coroner dictated during the autopsy and autopsy rooms have nothing but hard surfaces, so it was like he was shouting down a drainpipe.

Thanks for the replies.... - (see message)

[ In Reply To ..]
This is what I suspected....lots and lots of "stupefying" detail and gross pathology descriptions. I wondered if it was brain-numbing in that respect, and it sounds like it could be.

Whenever I read the path reports at the hospital where I worked as an acute-care MT, I found them a little mind-boggling and couldn't even imagine how those gals could transcribe that stuff every day. My hat's off to those of you who can do path reports all day, every day! They are soooo detailed and complex, and our pathology docs were extreeeeemely particular.

I appreciate everyone's input. Sounds like this type of transcription might not be my cup of tea.

Oh, and P.S..... - (one more thing)

[ In Reply To ..]
I do remember on the ONE single autopsy report I did during my schooling all those years ago that there was loud clanging going on during the dictation....I assumed the doc was dropping organs into a metal tray or container and then weighing them(?). Clanging the tools around on stainless steel....makes for frustrating audio!

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