Decedent Affairs for the Medical Officer

Department of the Navy
Bureau of Medicine and Surgery

Operational setting

When a death occurs within a command, the medical officer/senior medical department representative (MO/SMDR) shall immediately furnish the commanding officer with a memorandum report providing required documenting as per MILPERSMAN 4210100 for naval personnel and Decendent Affairs Manual, paragraph 3, chapter 3 (NAVMEDCOMINST 5360.1), for other than Naval personnel. An entry should documented in the Medical Department Journal describing all available information concerning the death.

There are five categories of individuals who will be pronounced dead at an MTF:

• Active duty personnel.

• Retired/retained personnel.

• Retired personnel.

• Dependents of active duty personnel.

• All others.

Each MTF should have a death packet that covers required notifications of each category of personnel. This packet must be as complete as possible even if the family does not want to deal with the issue at the time of notification.

• Physicians should make initial notification to the primary next of kin (PNOK) of an active duty member only, if the PNOK is physically in the MTF at the time of death. If the PNOK is not in the MTF, the physician will not contact the PNOK by telephone, as notification will be done in person by the assigned casualty assistance calls officer (CACO).

• The command duty officer/officer of the day (CDO/OOD) will release a casualty report to BUPERS or CMC as appropriate. If the deceased was an active duty member, permission for an autopsy is not required from the PNOK. Do not approach this topic with the PNOK.

• All other death categories require a signed SF 523, Authorization for Autopsy.

Each State, U.S. Territory, or overseas location has specific requirements for its death certificate. Check withyour patient administration department for those requirements. Although you pronounce an individual dead, the medical examiner will be notified if death occurred by:

• Violence.

• Suicide.

• Casualty.

• Suddenly, in apparent good health, or unattended by a physician.

• Suspicious or unusual manner.

Death of a fetus/newborn

A medical examiner shall investigate the death of a human fetus if:

• Regardless of the duration of the pregnancy, the death occurs before expulsion or extraction of the fetus from the mother.

• The mother is not attended by a physician at or after the delivery.

When in doubt, call the medical examiner's office and ask if they would like to review the case.