Dr. Jonathan Lucas listens to the stories of his patients every day, even though they can no longer speak. These stories are told through autopsies and toxicology tests at the Medical Examiner’s Office.
“We serve the function of investigating death, and that’s a morbid subject…but one of the main reasons we do what we do is to find relevance for the living. If nobody ever cared about why people died, then we wouldn’t exist,” said Dr. Lucas.
Dr. Lucas is the newly-appointed Deputy Chief Medical Examiner, the second-in-command in a department of 51 people who investigate about 10,000 cases every year.
By law, the Medical Examiner handles all unnatural deaths including homicides, suicides, accidents, deaths in custody and state institutions, and also sudden and unexpected deaths of people who had not recently been under a doctor’s care. Most of the cases are resolved before they ever make it through the door of the Medical Examiner’s Office, but about 3,000 are brought in for further evaluation.
Dr. Lucas said it’s those cases that provide a snapshot of what is causing deaths in our community, things such as the prevalence of prescription drug abuse, the increase in suicides during a down economy, and the reduction in vehicle accidents when gas prices are rising.
Sharing those trends and working with other agencies to have a positive impact on them is a priority for Dr. Lucas in his new role. He developed an annual report for the department last year, to provide context about the cases that they investigate. He hopes the information can educate the public about the role of the Medical Examiner, a challenge he has faced ever since he decided to focus on pathology while studying medicine.
“When I was in medical school, I mentioned to someone who practiced family medicine that I was thinking about pathology,” he recalls. “And she said, ‘What a waste. They’re just overpaid butchers.’”
| Even if the news is bad, you know that you’re giving people the honest answer and the truth. |
| Dr. Jonathan Lucas, Deputy Chief Medical Examiner |
But that was also back when the television character, Quincy, was the only reference most people had to the Medical Examiner. Now, there’s a plethora of TV MEs, raising awareness about the profession, but Dr. Lucas said, also raising the need for a little re-education, especially when he testifies in court, where jurors might be used to the idea of the case being resolved in a one-hour episode.
Dr. Lucas said in his ten years working at the County Medical Examiner’s Office, he has also developed the skills to deal with the families who are impacted by his cases, understanding that they are struggling with a death that was likely unexpected and traumatic.
“It is very fulfilling to be able to give people answers to something they didn’t know the answer to; even if the news is bad, you know that you’re giving people the honest answer and the truth,” he said.
But, he added, it’s important to maintain perspective.
“You do take it home with you. You can’t just turn it off. I think understanding that I didn’t make these people’s decisions helps me stay separate from it.”
He said the cases he sees are also a lesson in appreciation.
“There are lessons in there for the rest of us. We are constantly reminded of how fortunate that we are, that we have our health, that we’re not addicted to drugs, that we have a support network. They are a constant reminder of the things we do have.”
