Medical students should be better prepared for observing postmortem examinations

Abstract

Witnessing a postmortem examination can be markedly different from undertaking a dissection, and may be more distressing. Medical students should receive a detailed brief about the technical practice of a postmortem examination before viewing one, writes Annie Graham “Have you ever seen a dead body?” This was the only question I was asked by the autopsy technician before witnessing my first postmortem examination. It was a difficult one to answer. I had seen cadavers in anatomy rooms before, and even dissected them, but I had never seen a recently deceased person. I decided to say that I had, and with my psychological preparation deemed sufficient, I went into the examination room. Observing a postmortem examination was presented to me as a fantastic way to gain a close understanding of human anatomy in a more immersive setting and to appreciate pathologies in their entirety. But the lack of information I was given about the technical practice of the examination meant that I was too shocked to take in much of the anatomy shown to …