Medicolegal death investigation partnerships on overdose fatality reviews

Abstract

The main purpose of Overdose Fatality Reviews (OFRs) is to review overdose fatalities and find gaps in services to help save lives. They rely on a multi-agency approach to information sharing to accomplish this goal. Upon completion of case reviews, OFR teams formulate recommendations to improve services based on the advice from a collaboration of partners, each of whom brings a unique perspective to the team. Most OFRs rely heavily on the cooperation and assistance from medicolegal death investigation (MDI) personnel in their jurisdiction. The OFR process begins with a notification of an overdose, which is key to providing a real-time perspective for the deaths reviewed along with insight into community trends. The work of death investigators is critical to understanding how to address the overdose epidemic and the overall process of an OFR. Fostering partnerships with the MDI community and getting them involved in the OFR process is key to sharing information and saving lives.