Basic Autopsy Procedure

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About the Basic Autopsy Procedure course

The course is an introduction to basic autopsy procedure for medical (hospital-type) autopsies. It does not cover forensics-type cases, per se. However, you will work on skills relevant to all autopsy work: external examination, identifying decomposition change, tracking the autopsy procedure step-by-step, and so on. And you will learn by observing real cases. The patients in the course will be your teacher. The course provides necessary fundamentals for all autopsies, including forensics-type autopsies.

At the end of the course, there is an assessment (exam). After completing the exam and all course lessons, please download your Certificate of Completion from the course home page.

Access to the course requires login. You will set up your username and password during checkout. Find your “Institutional Code” in your registration confirmation email.

Course Outline

Introduction – Basic Autopsy Procedure

Welcome
Important – Terms and Privacy
How the course fits in with your career. Feedback.
What you’ll need
Keep a vocabulary list
Guided research
Completing the course. Downloading your Course Completion Certificate

1 -Safety

1-1 Autopsy Safety
1-2 Autopsy Safety – discussion
1-3 Lab: Case-viewing skills – introduction
1-4 Lab: Case-viewing skills
Vocabulary reminder
1-5 Personal protective equipment
1-6 More about personal protective equipment
1-7 Lab: Case-viewing skills
Vocabulary reminder
1-8 Putting on the gown and gloves
1-9 Taking off the gown and gloves
1-10 Lab: Case-viewing skills
1-11 Putting on the scalpel blade
1-12 Taking off the scalpel blade
Vocabulary reminder
1-13 More about preventing scalpel sticks
1-14 Lab: Case-viewing skills
1-15 Long knives
1-16 Preventing needle sticks
1-17 Lab: Case-viewing skills
1-18 Sharp ribs
1-19 Pacemakers
1-20 Lab: Case-viewing skills
1-21 Take care of your back
1-22 Splashes
1-23 Lab: Case-viewing skills
1-24 Attitude

2 – Before you begin

2-1 The consent – basics
2-2 Who has legal rights?
2-3 More about consents – See it yourself!
2-4 Lab: Case-viewing skills
2-5 The medical history
2-6 Planning the case
2-7 Lab: Case-viewing skills
2-8 Stay grounded, stay cautious.
2-9 Practice evidence-based thinking
2-10 Get into your mindset – remember, the patient (usually) has a family
2-11 Lab: Case-viewing skills
2-12 Basic set-up: Safety and working space
2-13 Basic set-up: Your equipment
2-14 Lab: Case-viewing skills
2-15 Basic set-up: Table and patient position
2-16 Lab: Case-viewing skills
2-17 Documentation

3 – Starting the case

3-1 Identifying the body
3-2 Lab: Identifying the body – 1
3-3 Lab: Identifying the body – 2
3-4 Lab: Identifying the body – 3
3-5 Obtain any required samples – introduction
3-6 Obtain any required samples – basic set-up
3-7 Obtain any required samples – blood
3-8 Obtain any required samples – vitreous
3-9 Obtain any required samples – urine
3-10 Obtain any required samples – other

4 – External exam

4-1 External Exam
4-2 General body assessment
4-3 Lab: General body assessment: Body habitus
4-4 Lab: General body assessment: Livor mortis
4-5 Lab: General body assessment: Postmortem change – 1
4-6 Lab: General body assessment: Postmortem change – 2
4-7 Lab: General body assessment – Postmortem change – 3
4-8 Skin – general
4-9 Lab: Get ready to assess your patients – 1
4-10 Lab: Get ready to assess your patients – 2
4-11 Feet
4-12 Lab: Here are your 5 patients to assess: Start with the feet
4-13 Legs
4-14 Lab: Your five patients – assess the legs
4-15 Genitals/groin
4-16 Lab: Your five patients – assess the genitals/groin
4-17 Abdomen
4-18 Lab: Your five patients – assess the abdomen
4-19 Chest
Vocabulary reminder
4-20 Lab: Your five patients – assess the chest
4-21 Neck
4-22 Lab: Your five patients – assess the neck
4-23 Head
4-24 Lab: Your five patients – assess the head
4-25 Arms
4-26 Lab: Your five patients – assess the arms
4-27 Back and buttocks
4-28 Lab: Your five patients – assess the back and buttocks
4-29 Lab: Summary activity

5 – The skin incision – basics

5-1 Reminder: Follow the consent!
5-2 Take care of yourself. Be comfortable.
5-3 Principles of incision – introduction
5-4 Principles of incision – the law
5-5 Principles of incision – practical guidelines
5-6 Principles of incision – the family
5-7 Y-shaped incision: chest and abdomen
5-8 Y-shaped incision: how deep to cut
5-9 Head incision
5-10 Partial autopsies

6 – After the Y-shaped incision

6-1 Expose the chest plate
6-2 Expose the abdominal cavity – basics
6-3 Expose the abdominal cavity – procedure
6-4 Expose the structures of the neck
6-5 Remove the chest plate
6-6 Safety: Protection from sharp ribs
6-7 Survey the chest and abdomen
6-8 Assess any surgical changes that require in situ assessment

7 – After the head incision

7-1 Reflecting the scalp – introduction
7-2 Reflecting the scalp – anterior scalp
7-3 Reflecting the scalp – posterior scalp
7-4 Reflecting the scalp – if the scalp is adherent to the skull
7-5 Lab: Head incision
7-6 Accessing the cranial cavity – reflect the temporalis muscle
7-7 Accessing the cranial cavity – remove the calvarial cap

8 – Before the organs come out.

8-1 Draw blood
8-2 Take cultures
8-3 Open the pericardial sac
8-4 Check for pulmonary embolism
8-5 Tie off the neck and pelvic arteries — help the funeral director

9 – Taking the organs out

9-1 Introduction
9-2 Common procedures: releasing the neck organs
9-3 Removing the chest block
9-4 Common procedures: removing the bowel

10 – Removing the brain

10-1 Removing the brain
10-2 Assessing the base of skull, calvarial cap and dura
10-3 Removing the pituitary

11 – Separating the organs

11-1 Separating the organs – introduction
11-2 Tips

12 – Microscopy

12-1 Standard sections

13 – Ending the case

13-1 Returning the organs to the body
13-2 Closing the body
13-3 Safety
13-4 Clean up
13-5 Safety (again!)
13-6 After the case

14 – After the work is done

14-1 After the work is done