Washtenaw County has a newer and bigger facility for you to "bring out iyour dead," now that the University of Michigan Health System has renovated and expanded its morgue.

U-M and the Washtenaw County Medical Examiner partnered on the $1.35 million project. The newly expanded facility should double the number of autopsies (600) that university and county staff handle annually.

"It's brighter. The layout is better. There is a lot more space," says Dr. Jeffery Jentzen, director of U-M’s autopsy and forensic services. We have been able to double our capactiy and we could probably do more than that."

Among the extras at the new facility are double the autopsy tables (4) and a special autopsy room that can contain odors or infectious diseases. A new obersevation room for police and students was also added, along with extra body storage space for up to 25 corpses. The morgue is also brighter, offers more storage and is more secure.

All of this was done thanks of a redesign. No extra square footage was added. However, the redesign does facilitate more basic ergonomically friendly features, such as the easier to move bodies in and out of the facility.

Source: Dr. Jeffery Jentzen, director of autopsy and forensic services at the University of Michigan
Writer: Jon Zemke