Stanislaus County Coroner Facility Inspection*

Published: June 24, 2011 3 pages

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⚠️ Aviso de traducción: Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.

⚠️ Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.

Findings and Recommendations 3 findings

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approximately 32 years old. The current facility is meeting current mandated requirements. Recent upgrades to heating, cooling and ventilation systems are limited "stop gap" measures at controlling odor. Based on the size and construction of the current facility, there are no available solutions for reducing noise levels or improving sound insulation. Future operational mandates, as determined by the Department of Justice and projected workloads are undetermined at this time. Response: The respondent agrees with the finding. The Stanislaus County Civil Grand Jury finds the Coroner's Office pathologists are

Related Recommendations (1)

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It is the recommendation of the Stanislaus County Civil Grand Jury that the Coroner's Division/Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department continue with the proposed renovation of the Medical Arts Building in an effort to re-locate the Coroner's Division. The proposed move would allow the Coroner's Office to operate in a more up to date facility, improved and enlarge available work spaces and upgrade and/or add essential equipment. These improvements would improve the efficiency of the Coroner's Office and subsequently benefit the current and future need of Stanislaus County residents. Response: The respondent agrees with the recommendation. Staff at the Sheriff's Office continues to work with the Stanislaus County Chief Executive Office and the Capital Improvements Team, with the goal of relocating the Coroner's Division to the Medical Arts Building as presented to the Board of Supervisors in the Capital Improvements Projects report.

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performing as estimated 450-500 autopsies per year. According to N.A.M.E., Board Certified Pathologists should be performing no more than 250 autopsies per year. Based on N.A.M.E. standards, caseloads exceeding 350 autopsies per year increase the risk of errors and the quality of the autopsies can be sacrificed. In addition, more than 400 autopsies, performed by one pathologist, is considered a "phase 1" deficiency if accreditation is sought through N.A.M.E. Response: The respondent agrees with the finding. We provided this exact information to the Civil Grand Jury in a letter dated April 25, 2011. Stanislavs 250 East Hackett Rd. • Modesto, CA 95358 (209) 525-7216 • FAX (209) 567-4417 STRIVING TO BE THE BEST www.StanislausSheriff.com June 24, 2011 The Honorable Ricardo Cordova Re: Response to Civil Grand Jury Report 11-43GJ The Stanislaus County Civil Grand Jury finds the Stanislaus County Coroner's Division is

Related Recommendations (1)

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It is the recommendation of the Stanislaus County Civil Grand Jury to increase staffing levels in an effort to conform to the performance standards as recommended by N.A.M.E. Response: The respondent agrees with the recommendation. Unfortunately, due to drastic budget cuts and a decrease in appropriations, the current economic climate does not allow for an increase in staffing or services. Our hope is that once the current economic challenges improve; we will be able to hire additional staff and apply for N.A.M.E. accreditation. The Honorable Ricardo Cordova June 24, 2011 Re: Response to Civil Grand Jury Report 11-43GJ

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not prepared/equipped to respond to a large-scale multi-causality disaster. At current capacity, the Coroner's Office facility is only capable of adequately holding approximately 15-20 human remains. Response: The respondent agrees with the finding. While our current facility has been identified as one that needs to be replaced, in the event of a natural disaster or intentional terrorist incident, there are resources available to local agencies either through the California Emergency Management Agency (Mutual Aid) or from the United States Federal Government through the Office of Emergency Services. Recommendations:

Related Recommendations (1)

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It is the recommendation of the Stanislaus County Civil Grand Jury to dedicate use of increased space to an area prepared/equipped to adequately respond to a multi-causality incident. Response: The respondent agrees with the recommendation. Sincerely ADAM CHRISTIANSON Sheriff-Coroner Stanislaus County cc: Supervisor Dick Monteith, Chairman Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors Denis D. France, Foreperson Stanislaus County Civil Grand Jury Richard W. Robinson, Chief Executive Officer Stanislaus County

* This report's PDF did not contain easily extractable text and required Optical Character Recognition (OCR) for analysis. There may be minor errors in the extracted findings and recommendations due to OCR limitations with scanned documents.