DeKalb medical examiner details staffing, turnaround times, new fellowship and overdose trends

Bianca Loveless, director of the DeKalb County Medical Examiner's Office, told the DeKalb County IRPS Committee that the office is operating under a public'private partnership that helps speed autopsy and toxicology turnaround times and supports specialty staffing.

Loveless said the DeKalb office receives roughly 2,300 reported cases annually and conducts just under 1,000 forensic examinations. Of about 5,400 county deaths each year, roughly half are reported to the medical examiner's office and the office determines whether an exam is required. She said investigators and administrative staff are county employees while autopsy physicians and related medical staff work under contract with Forensic Medicine Associates (FMA) led by Dr. Gowett.

The arrangement, Loveless said, lets DeKalb contract physicians take autopsies for other counties (excluding prosecutable homicide cases), which helps justify larger physician staffing and shortens turnaround times. She said almost 70% of…