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Kent County to seek Michigan State University partnership for medical examiner services
Summary
County Administrator Al Vanderburgh said staff will bring a recommendation to the Board of Commissioners to partner with Michigan State University for chief medical examiner services and to consolidate medical examiner functions into a larger facility.
County Administrator Al Vanderburgh told the State of the County audience that the county has pursued a larger, consolidated medical examiner facility and will present a recommendation to the Board of Commissioners to partner with Michigan State University (MSU).
Al Vanderburgh said the proposed agreement would have MSU provide Kent County with the services of the county’s chief medical examiner, Stephen Cole, at MSU’s College of Human Medicine. Vanderburgh said the partnership would expand teaching opportunities by “bringing the classroom directly into the medical examiner's office,” creating a training ground amid a national shortage of forensic pathologists.
Vanderburgh described the medical examiner project as a multi-year effort that has focused on improving the continuum of services. Officials said consolidation under a single, state-of-the-art facility is intended to provide timely, accurate information to families and law enforcement and to expand on-site capabilities such as forensic anthropology.
Vanderburgh said staff will soon bring a recommendation to the board and that the county is not treating the project as a debt issue. No final board vote or contract was announced at the event; Vanderburgh said the recommendation will be considered by the Board of Commissioners later in the week.
