Article 213 In order to determine the cause of death, with the approval of the person in charge of the public security organ at or above the county level, the corpse may be dissected or opened for examination, and the family members of the deceased shall be notified to be present and the notice of autopsy shall be signed or sealed.
If the family of the deceased refuses to be present or refuses to sign or seal without justifiable reasons, it will not affect the autopsy or coffin opening inspection, but it shall be indicated in the notice of autopsy. For unidentified bodies, if it is impossible to inform the families of the deceased, it shall be noted in the record.
Problems needing attention in medical autopsy;
1. Time limit for medical autopsy: The Regulations on Handling Medical Accidents stipulates: "If a patient dies and both doctors and patients cannot determine the cause of death or disagree with it, an autopsy shall be conducted within 48 hours after the death of the patient. If the autopsy is refused or delayed for more than the specified time, which affects the determination of the cause of death, the party who refuses or delays shall bear the responsibility. "
The Interim Provisions of Beijing Municipality on Corpse Inspection stipulates: "Those who meet the requirements of low-temperature preservation of corpses (continuous low-temperature preservation, the temperature is from MINUS 20 degrees to MINUS 18 degrees) can be extended to 7 days."
Therefore, both doctors and patients should decide whether to conduct autopsy in time, so as to leave necessary preparation time for autopsy institutions to conduct autopsy in time. In addition, since the decision-making power of medical autopsy lies with the patient's family members, whether the family members agree to medical autopsy should have a written signature document. If the family members fail to sign the agreement or disagree within the specified time, it shall be deemed that the family members give up the medical autopsy.
2. Nature of medical autopsy: Medical autopsy refers to pathological anatomy stipulated in the autopsy rules, and its purpose is to clarify the cause of death and confirm the clinical diagnosis.
It should be emphasized that autopsy can only determine the cause of death, and the autopsy results are an important reference for the medical accident appraisal Committee. It is beyond the scope of autopsy work to make tendentious or conclusive opinions on whether there is any impropriety or fault in the diagnosis and treatment process.