THUNDER BAY — Five years after the Broken Trust report called for the establishment of a forensic pathology unit in Thunder Bay to conduct autopsies in unnatural or suspicious death cases in Northwestern Ontario, the recommendation remains unfulfilled.
Now a decision by the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre is drawing renewed attention to the need for the unit, which was identified in the 2018 report of the Office of the Independent Review Director.
The hospital has announced that "as early as June," it will no longer perform medicolegal autopsies for the Ontario coroner's service, which means all these autopsies may have to be conducted at the Forensic Services and Coroner's Complex in Toronto.
In his report, OIPRD director Gerry McNeilly stated that the Ontario Forensic Pathology Service "believes that it must provide high quality regionalized death investigation service delivery in northern Ontario and that it is important for the OFPS to provide medico-legal autopsy services that are compatible with cultural and societal norms in First Nation communities."
McNeilly said "There are significant challenges affecting the ultimate quality and timeliness of Thunder Bay Police Service investigations, in not having a Forensic Pathology Unit in Thunder Bay and in the requirement that TBPS officers must be sent to Toronto for autopsies. These challenges were identified by Forensic Identification Unit officers, TBPS investigators and senior management, and the Chief Forensic Pathologist."
Those concerns were the impetus behind the OIPRD's recommendation for a standalone forensic pathology unit in Thunder Bay.
In 2020, an OIPRD review of the implementation of all 44 of its recommendations disclosed that the Ontario Forensic Pathology Service and the Office of the Chief Coroner "continue to advocate" for the establishment of the unit "to ensure seamless and timely death investigations."
It also stated that the OFPS was having "ongoing discussions" with the Ministry of the Solicitor General to explore possible opportunities for a new building or for co-locating the unit with health or justice partners.
No public announcements have been made since then.
Thunder Bay hospital says its resources are stretched
In a statement Tuesday, the Thunder Bay hospital said its pathology department will continue to do medical autopsies on hospital patients at the request of its clinical staff, but it has notified provincial officials it will no longer be able to meet the need for medicolegal autopsies "in a timely and appropriate manner."
It said performing these autopsies in its laboratory has put "tremendous pressure" on its staff, capacity and resources at a time when when the health care system is already under extreme pressure that's not likely to diminish in the foreseeable future.
In addition to citing workload issues, the hospital said "it is recognized that from a quality perspective, medicolegal autopsies are best performed in the recognized Ontario Forensic Pathology Units."
The Ontario Forensic Pathology Service and Office of the Chief Coroner confirm they have been notified that TBRHSC intends to phase out its medicolegal autopsy practice to focus on its health care priorities.
Spokesperson Stephanie Rea said the OFPS "adheres to strict turnaround time guidelines for the performance of autopsies and the release of bodies regardless of location within the province" and works with police services "to share timely information about cases and to minimize their attendance at criminally-suspicious autopsies."
Rae added that "it is a priority to deliver services regionally, whenever possible," but that cases sometimes have to be transferred from Northwestern Ontario to the state-of-the-art facility in Toronto.
"The decision to refer cases from local communities is always based on an assessment of case complexity and public interest, while accommodating cultural expectations," she said.
According to data provided by OFPS and OCC, 262 forensic autopsies involving cases managed by the Thunder Bay regional office were conducted in Toronto last year, compared with 148 in Thunder Bay.
The year before, only 152 were done in Toronto and 139 were performed in Thunder Bay.
TBnewswatch reached out to the Ministry of the Solicitor General regarding the status of any efforts to implement the OIPRD's recommendation.
The ministry did not provide details, but said in a brief statement that it "will continue to explore options for localized autopsy services."
It also said it has confidence in the ability of the Ontario Forensic Pathology Service and the Office of the Chief Coroner to continue to provide death investigation services, where needed, for cases across the province.