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  • Autopsy reports

    What are the chances of obtaining an autopsy report from the 1980's?

    Thanks

    Linda

  • #2
    Slim, I would think. An autopsy/post mortem report is the medical findings submitted to the coroner for inquest purposes. Sometimes a paraphrase of these appears in the press report (if any) following the inquest, but I imagine the report itself is retained by the coroner's office and not accessible to the public. I'm not sure that the public has access to the records of an inquest, of which the post mortem report would just be one part.
    Its findings would form the basis of what is entered on the death certificate.

    Jay
    Janet in Yorkshire



    Genealogists never die - they just swap places in the family tree

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    • #3
      Thank you Jay

      Linda

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      • #4
        Coroners/inquest records are generally closed for 75 years - they can be released to those with a close interest (usually immediate family), but that is at the discretion of the coroner. The actual post-mortem report I believe forms part of the medical records of the deceased individual so little chance of it being given out.

        The cause of death, and often other contributory factors, which is what the post-mortem is done to establish would be shown on the death certificate as Janet says. For inquest information, the best route is almost always local newspapers.
        Retired professional researcher, and ex- deputy registrar, now based in Worcestershire. Happy to give any help or advice I can ( especially on matters of civil registration) - contact via PM or my website www.chalfontresearch.co.uk
        Follow me on Twittter @ChalfontR

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        • #5
          My late father died suddenly and unexpectedly. There was a post mortem and a cause of death was established so there was no need for an inquest. My brother and I were not convinced by the cause of death and we requested sight of the post mortem report. We were told that we were not entitled to see it as there was a clear cause of death and therefore we had no need to see it because it "belonged" to whoever had done the report.

          Iincidentally, the "clear cause of death" was so obscure that when we went to register the death, the Registrar had to phone the hospital to clarify what the cause of death was. She said she had never come across it before. Sorry, I digress!

          OC

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          • #6
            My paternal grandmother was found drowned in a canal in Leicester in 1932, the inquest report was in the coroner's office & my brother was allowed to view it & although he wasn't allowed to photo copy it, he was allowed to copy it out by hand.

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            • #7
              I found out a little about PM results working in a hospital. The Consultant had seen a patient in Clinic and the next day she was found dead. The Consultant asked me to get the pm report a week or so later as he obviously wanted to find out why she had died and what had been found.
              Spoke to the Coroners Officer (usually a Police Officer who is delegated to the Coroner who, in this case he was based in the hospital.) He told me that:
              a) the report is not to be filed in the patients hospital notes and
              b) the only person who gets a copy of it is the GP - thus I was able to ask the GP to send a copy to the Consultant which he did.
              This case had been reported because it was a "sudden death" - there was no inquest after the pm findings.
              This was in early 2003 - possibly the rules may have been different at an earlier date.
              I have seen (I think) Coroner's reports available on TNA - not sure of the dates though.
              I would be interested to know the current answer to this myself - the chap I am interested in, however, died in 1942. The Inquest WAS reported in the newspaper (it was a fairly high profile death) but I have seen, in another relative, a detailed Inquest report in a newspaper, describing how he committed suicide. Inquest reports are, however, not detailed Coroners findings.
              It may be worth contacting the relevant Coroner as you are a close relative.
              Last edited by Sue1; 14-09-15, 09:29.

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              • #8
                Thanks everyone... very interesting

                Linda

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                • #9
                  Just to clarify here - a post mortem report is the medical report of the person who performed the post mortem examination.(The autopsy)

                  It is NOT the same thing as an inquest report. Inquest reports are sometimes available, or they are published in a local newspaper. Post mortem resports are never published, and as far as I know, never available EXCEPT where they are required as part of an inquest.

                  My daughters' stepmother died suddenly and there had to be an inquest, at which was read out the post mortem (autopsy) findings, which detailed various medical matters, such as the fact that she had a damaged liver, her brain weighed so many grammes, she was undernourished etc etc. The inquest found the cause of death to be accidental.

                  So - post mortem/autopsy relates to the medical condition of the bodyand the likely medical cause of death. Inquest relates to the circumstances surrounding the death and whether the circumstances may have brought about the medical cause.

                  An autopsy decides you died because you were hit by a large object.(Physical evidence)
                  An inquest decides you died because you were hit by a train (eye witness evidence) and then decides whether you fell, were pushed, or jumped. (Eye witness/circumstantial evidence).

                  Phew!

                  OC

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                  • #10
                    I saw a number of PM reports in my previous job (police) , they are generally lists of complex medical terminology detailing levels of various substances in the blood and organs, the weight/condition of the organs and previous medical history .... the only bit in normal "English" is the conclusion paragraph at the end - which basically states the cause(s) of death and will be what appears on the death certificate.

                    As OC says, very different from the inquest records.
                    Retired professional researcher, and ex- deputy registrar, now based in Worcestershire. Happy to give any help or advice I can ( especially on matters of civil registration) - contact via PM or my website www.chalfontresearch.co.uk
                    Follow me on Twittter @ChalfontR

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