Medical Examiners: Supporting Overdose Prevention and Training for Overdose Investigations and Mortality Data

Medical examiners and coroners (ME/Cs) can play pivotal roles in the public health response to the overdose crisis. In this session, two presentations will outline contributions that can be made by ME/Cs and training that can support them.

The first presentation will feature the ECHO model as a means to train ME/Cs for their roles in drug overdose investigations and mortality data collection. Training and requirements for ME/Cs vary greatly across the nation, leading to inconsistency in how overdose deaths are reported. In addition, many ME/C offices lack funding, resources, and time to provide ample training for staff. In response, the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials received funding from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to pilot a virtual training for ME/Cs and to improve reporting of drug overdose deaths. Project ECHO: OD-FIT (Overdose Fatality Investigation Techniques) is the first large-scale training opportunity created specifically to engage ME/Cs in discussion about their response to the overdose crisis. OD-FIT uses the ECHO model to fill ME/C training gaps and allow a virtual space for best practices and experience to be shared. Presenters will explain ECHO: OD-FIT and share evaluation results and lessons learned from the pilot year.

The second presentation will illustrate how medical examiner’s offices are uniquely positioned to build collaborative, interdisciplinary overdose prevention programs. In New York City, the Office of Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) plays a crucial role in the city’s RxStat initiative by providing information on overdose deaths to partner agencies and identifying high-risk individuals for direct outreach. Presenters will provide the following three examples of innovative ways that medical examiners can prevent overdoses and build impactful partnerships in their jurisdiction:
1. Lead overdose fatality review programs to collect information after suspicious deaths
2. Identify overdose and drug environment trends
3. Participate in post-overdose response teams to provide overdose prevention services to family and friends of the deceased