De Cock KM, Zielinski-Gutiérrez E, Lucas SB. Learning from the Dead. N Engl J Med. 2019 Nov 14;381(20):1889-1891.

Full-text for Emory users.

“Obstacles to exploiting the rich database that the world’s decedents represent include not only the decline in autopsy rates but also a failure to prioritize broader innovative and culturally acceptable research and surveillance. Even information from medicolegal autopsies is not widely shared for auditing or educational purposes. A commitment among the medical and scientific communities to increase research and evaluation involving the dead, including assessments of postmortem investigations short of complete autopsies, could have great public health benefit.” (De Cock, 2019, pgs. 1889-1890)