What Do Coroners Do (including Their Typical Day At Work)

Job Description

Coroners direct activities such as autopsies, pathological and toxicological analyses, and inquests relating to the investigation of deaths occurring within a legal jurisdiction to determine cause of death or to fix responsibility for accidental, violent, or unexplained deaths. They also perform medicolegal examinations and autopsies, conducting preliminary examinations of the body to identify victims, locate signs of trauma, and identify factors that would indicate time of death.

Other tasks include:

• Inquire into the cause, manner, and circumstances of human deaths and establish the identities of deceased persons.
• Complete death certificates, including the assignment of cause and manner of death.
• Observe and record the positions and conditions of bodies and related evidence.
• Observe, record, and preserve any objects or personal property related to deaths, including objects such as medication containers and suicide notes.
• Interview persons present at death scenes to obtain information useful in determining the manner of death.
• Arrange for the next of kin to be notified of deaths.

We asked Coroners how satisfied they are with their job. Here is what they said.

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70% of them said they were satisfied with their job and 47% said they find that their job makes the world a better place or helps to make someone else’s life better.

Typical Day At Work

On a daily basis, Coroners inquire into the cause, manner, and circumstances of human deaths and establish the identities of deceased persons. They locate and document information regarding the next of kin, including their relationship to the deceased and the status of notification attempts.

A typical day for a Coroner will also include:

• Observe and record the positions and conditions of bodies and related evidence.
• Confer with officials of public health and law enforcement agencies to coordinate interdepartmental activities.
• Provide information concerning the circumstances of death to relatives of the deceased.
• Perform medicolegal examinations and autopsies, conducting preliminary examinations of the body to identify victims, locate signs of trauma, and identify factors that would indicate time of death.
• Complete death certificates, including the assignment of cause and manner of death.

We asked some Coroners a few questions to find out what else does their work day look like. Here is what we found.

	Do you have telephone conversations everyday in this job?	87% said yes
	How important is it to work in a team in this job?	29% said very important
	Do you have group discussions everyday in this job?	68% said yes
	Do you talk or work with customers everyday in this job?	61% said yes
	Do you have to deal with angry customers everyday in this job?	19% said yes
	Do you have to make decisions everyday in this job?	42% said yes

Other responsibilities

Besides their typical day, Coroners also inventory personal effects recovered from bodies, such as jewelry or wallets. They may also interview persons present at death scenes to obtain information useful in determining the manner of death.

On a weekly to monthly basis, Coroners Provide information concerning the circumstances of death to relatives of the deceased. They might also Coordinate the release of personal effects to authorized persons and facilitate the disposition of unclaimed corpses and personal effects.

In addition, they Arrange for the next of kin to be notified of deaths.

Although specific duties may vary, many of them Observe and record the positions and conditions of bodies and related evidence.

To some Coroners, it is also their responsibility to Remove or supervise removal of bodies from death scenes, using the proper equipment and supplies, and arrange for transportation to morgues.

Working life

More than 40 hours per week

Irregular work schedule that changes depending on weather conditions, customer demand or contract duration.

In a typical work week as a Coroner, you can expect to work more than 40 hours per week.

Is this right for me

People who are suitable for this job tends to like working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. They like searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally..

They also like work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They like working with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery.

You can read more about these career personality types here.

Explore other careers

http://www.bls.gov/ooh/life-physical-and-social-science/forensic-science-technicians.htm

http://www.aafs.org/

http://www.criminalistics.com/

http://www.icsia.org/