If your loved one has died in a hospital, and an autopsy is desired, first ask about having the autopsy done by the hospital’s pathology staff. This is the first advice I always give as it may, under those circumstances, be free of charge. Talk to the doctor of record for your loved one because if they ask, there is a better chance it will happen. That said, many hospitals these days do not have such means. If you choose a private pathology service, be sure the autopsy provider you choose is a board certified pathologist, licensed in that state where the exam occurs, and preferably boarded in both anatomic and forensic pathology. BEWARE OF REFERRAL SERVICES.  Many national autopsy service providers use a lay tech/assistant who dissects and simply works with a pathologist, and they may not even be present for that dissection. This kind of thing unfortunately happens.   It is only through first hand dissection, observing internal relationships and appreciating the reactions to lesions and correlating with history that one arrives at correct opinions to cause and manner of death. If you really want to know “what happened?”, speak to us at www.theautopsydoctor.com