I just stumbled across this site, where a pathologist explains the autopsy procedure for screenwriters because of all the errors usually made in popular fiction.
In case anyone is doing medical dramas or mysteries...
Well, that was detailed. Glad I don't have that job.
Very informative though. Now I won't be able to watch a TV show or movie that has an autopsy without seeing if they do it correctly.
Thanks for the link, Teraen.
Posted by Robert Nowall (Member # 2764) on :
I saw one of those "reality" autopsy shows the other day...I mean, in the first one, you could tell it was the actor from the "dramatic recreations" just holding his breath for a few seconds...and in the second, the coroner made a big deal about the smell of the corpse, to the point of a near-moon-suit surgical garb donning---then does the autopsy without wearing so much as a surgical mask!
Moral: don't go by the TV shows...dig a little deeper...
Posted by tchernabyelo (Member # 2651) on :
One of the problems with this sort of thing is about reader expectation. There is a meme, if you will, of what people expect to happen in an autopsy (because they are exposed to it so much on TV) and if you deviate from it - even if your deviation is far more realistic - some of your readers may actually be alienated.
