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The Influence of Culture in the Authorization of an Autopsy

The way any individual handles the experience of losing a loved one because of death is determined by that person’s personal and cultural values, as well as by his past experiences. Unquestionably, the moments prior to and after death in the family comprise one of life’s most emotionally charged circumstances. Naturally, at such a time, the individual reaches out for a framework of guidelines to counsel him. This is the time when the physician responsible for the care of the patient approaches family members to ask for authorization to perform an autopsy. It cannot be a more traumatic moment. Why is it that some grant the authorization and others do not? To what extent does culture or society influence an individual to allow or not to allow the postmortem study? These very important issues are addressed by Henry S. Perkins, Josie D. Supik, and Helen P. Hazuda in their work. To approach these questions, it is worthwhile to explore individual and cultural attitudes toward death and its causes. Since death is such a powerful force in mankind, a holistic approach should be more helpful. By this, I mean that all the sources of information and manifestations of man’s mind and feelings--such as the opinions and beliefs of individuals, ideas expressed in literature and poems, and symbols--ought to be considered potentially useful in the process of understanding the mechanism that leads to a decision. The cross-cultural analysis should also be attempted. The postmortem study has, in itself, a rather peculiar history in many cultures and countries. The question of why a particular individual died may be of paramount importance to the physician; but is it important enough to the family to justify a procedure such as an autopsy? First, physicians must recognize that to certain ethnic groups they have to justify the idea that there is a scientific explanation of why someone died. To certain cultures, the rational approach of using the scientific method to explain the cause