Supporting the Deceased, Their Families, and Their Communities – Part 1:Why Establish an Office of Decedent Affairs

Meagan Chambers; Tanner Bartholow; Zachary T. Parker; Kristina Peters; R. Ross Reichard; Daniel J. Luthringer; Charles Tigard; Jody E. Hooper; Paul Benson; Ronnie Davis; Robert Cool; Ben Beglarian; Sharon Mount; Nicole R. Jackson; Kathryn P. Scherpelz; Desiree Marshall; John Sinard; Lisbeth Harcourt; La Tresa E. Wiley; Sonja Chen; Jessica M. Comstock; Courtney Hyland; Holly Harper; David Priemer; Amy Rapkiewicz; Amyn M. Rojiani

doi:10.5858/arpa.2025-0090-OA

Supporting the Deceased, Their Families, and Their Communities – Part 1:Why Establish an Office of Decedent Affairs

Meagan Chambers^*, Tanner Bartholow, Zachary T. Parker, Kristina Peters, R. Ross Reichard, Daniel J. Luthringer, Charles Tigard, Jody E. Hooper, Paul Benson, Ronnie Davis, Robert Cool, Ben Beglarian, Sharon Mount, Nicole R. Jackson, Kathryn P. Scherpelz, Desiree Marshall, John Sinard, Lisbeth Harcourt, La Tresa E. Wiley, Sonja ChenJessica M. Comstock, Courtney Hyland, Holly Harper, David Priemer, Amy Rapkiewicz, Amyn M. Rojiani

^*Corresponding author for this work

Pathology

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

Context.—Decedent Affairs Offices and Programs can serve as an avenue to assist medical centers in facilitating efficient and comprehensive decedent management, despite a paucity of literature on their roles, establishment, and efficacy. Objective.—To characterize the motivations and rationales for establishing Decedent Affairs Offices. Design.—A survey was administered to 11 established Decedent Affairs Offices/Programs, identified through the College of American Pathologists Autopsy Committee and a Medical Autopsy Listserv. The questions comprehensively cover establishment, operations, and outcomes data available by institution. Results.—Survey respondents reported the rationale for starting their programs and the benefits such offices can have. Conclusions.—Decedent Affairs Offices and Programs provide a useful option to medical centers to navigate the increasingly complex task of comprehensive decedent management. The present survey helps to delineate the similarities and differences between these programs at 11 institutions, to aid nascent programs in their establishment and growth over time.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	1072-1076
Number of pages	5
Journal	Archives of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
Volume	149
Issue number	12
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.5858/arpa.2025-0090-OA
State	Published - Dec 2025

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10.5858/arpa.2025-0090-OA

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Chambers, M., Bartholow, T., Parker, Z. T., Peters, K., Reichard, R. R., Luthringer, D. J., Tigard, C., Hooper, J. E., Benson, P., Davis, R., Cool, R., Beglarian, B., Mount, S., Jackson, N. R., Scherpelz, K. P., Marshall, D., Sinard, J., Harcourt, L., Wiley, L. T. E., ... Rojiani, A. M. (2025). Supporting the Deceased, Their Families, and Their Communities – Part 1:Why Establish an Office of Decedent Affairs. Archives of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, 149(12), 1072-1076. https://doi.org/10.5858/arpa.2025-0090-OA

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title = "Supporting the Deceased, Their Families, and Their Communities – Part 1:Why Establish an Office of Decedent Affairs",

abstract = "Context.—Decedent Affairs Offices and Programs can serve as an avenue to assist medical centers in facilitating efficient and comprehensive decedent management, despite a paucity of literature on their roles, establishment, and efficacy. Objective.—To characterize the motivations and rationales for establishing Decedent Affairs Offices. Design.—A survey was administered to 11 established Decedent Affairs Offices/Programs, identified through the College of American Pathologists Autopsy Committee and a Medical Autopsy Listserv. The questions comprehensively cover establishment, operations, and outcomes data available by institution. Results.—Survey respondents reported the rationale for starting their programs and the benefits such offices can have. Conclusions.—Decedent Affairs Offices and Programs provide a useful option to medical centers to navigate the increasingly complex task of comprehensive decedent management. The present survey helps to delineate the similarities and differences between these programs at 11 institutions, to aid nascent programs in their establishment and growth over time.",

author = "Meagan Chambers and Tanner Bartholow and Parker, {Zachary T.} and Kristina Peters and Reichard, {R. Ross} and Luthringer, {Daniel J.} and Charles Tigard and Hooper, {Jody E.} and Paul Benson and Ronnie Davis and Robert Cool and Ben Beglarian and Sharon Mount and Jackson, {Nicole R.} and Scherpelz, {Kathryn P.} and Desiree Marshall and John Sinard and Lisbeth Harcourt and Wiley, {La Tresa E.} and Sonja Chen and Comstock, {Jessica M.} and Courtney Hyland and Holly Harper and David Priemer and Amy Rapkiewicz and Rojiani, {Amyn M.}",

year = "2025",

month = dec,

doi = "10.5858/arpa.2025-0090-OA",

language = "English",

volume = "149",

pages = "1072--1076",

journal = "Archives of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine",

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Chambers, M, Bartholow, T, Parker, ZT, Peters, K, Reichard, RR, Luthringer, DJ, Tigard, C, Hooper, JE, Benson, P, Davis, R, Cool, R, Beglarian, B, Mount, S, Jackson, NR, Scherpelz, KP, Marshall, D, Sinard, J, Harcourt, L, Wiley, LTE, Chen, S, Comstock, JM, Hyland, C, Harper, H, Priemer, D, Rapkiewicz, A & Rojiani, AM 2025, 'Supporting the Deceased, Their Families, and Their Communities – Part 1:Why Establish an Office of Decedent Affairs', Archives of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, vol. 149, no. 12, pp. 1072-1076. https://doi.org/10.5858/arpa.2025-0090-OA

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AU - Chambers, Meagan

AU - Bartholow, Tanner

AU - Parker, Zachary T.

AU - Peters, Kristina

AU - Reichard, R. Ross

AU - Luthringer, Daniel J.

AU - Tigard, Charles

AU - Hooper, Jody E.

AU - Benson, Paul

AU - Davis, Ronnie

AU - Cool, Robert

AU - Beglarian, Ben

AU - Mount, Sharon

AU - Jackson, Nicole R.

AU - Scherpelz, Kathryn P.

AU - Marshall, Desiree

AU - Sinard, John

AU - Harcourt, Lisbeth

AU - Wiley, La Tresa E.

AU - Chen, Sonja

AU - Comstock, Jessica M.

AU - Hyland, Courtney

AU - Harper, Holly

AU - Priemer, David

AU - Rapkiewicz, Amy

AU - Rojiani, Amyn M.

PY - 2025/12

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N2 - Context.—Decedent Affairs Offices and Programs can serve as an avenue to assist medical centers in facilitating efficient and comprehensive decedent management, despite a paucity of literature on their roles, establishment, and efficacy. Objective.—To characterize the motivations and rationales for establishing Decedent Affairs Offices. Design.—A survey was administered to 11 established Decedent Affairs Offices/Programs, identified through the College of American Pathologists Autopsy Committee and a Medical Autopsy Listserv. The questions comprehensively cover establishment, operations, and outcomes data available by institution. Results.—Survey respondents reported the rationale for starting their programs and the benefits such offices can have. Conclusions.—Decedent Affairs Offices and Programs provide a useful option to medical centers to navigate the increasingly complex task of comprehensive decedent management. The present survey helps to delineate the similarities and differences between these programs at 11 institutions, to aid nascent programs in their establishment and growth over time.

AB - Context.—Decedent Affairs Offices and Programs can serve as an avenue to assist medical centers in facilitating efficient and comprehensive decedent management, despite a paucity of literature on their roles, establishment, and efficacy. Objective.—To characterize the motivations and rationales for establishing Decedent Affairs Offices. Design.—A survey was administered to 11 established Decedent Affairs Offices/Programs, identified through the College of American Pathologists Autopsy Committee and a Medical Autopsy Listserv. The questions comprehensively cover establishment, operations, and outcomes data available by institution. Results.—Survey respondents reported the rationale for starting their programs and the benefits such offices can have. Conclusions.—Decedent Affairs Offices and Programs provide a useful option to medical centers to navigate the increasingly complex task of comprehensive decedent management. The present survey helps to delineate the similarities and differences between these programs at 11 institutions, to aid nascent programs in their establishment and growth over time.

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