The Pima County Office of the Medical Examiner (PCOME) is poised to quickly boost its efficiency with the spacious new facility it will call home by year's end. The freshly completed digs were unveiled during a ceremony on October 16, as per a report from Pima County's official newsroom. The state-of-the-art mortuary room looks like it could belong to a TV crime drama, fully equipped to handle a larger volume of autopsies with six substantial tables.
Stretching over an expansive floor plan with double the square footage of its previous iteration, the new PCOME building comes with advanced cooler space for the preserved, updated technology for the living, and a courtyard complete with a columbarium, catering to moments of reflection, according to Pima County's news release. Dr. Gregory Hess, Pima County's Medical Examiner, in an interview during the celebration, expressed a keen sense of anticipation and surrealism about the expanded capabilities the new facility will provide.
A notable feature of the new PCOME office is its own crematorium, a rarity among medical examiner offices. This installation will affordably serve the Indigent Interment Program and extend its benefits to the cremation of deceased pets from the Pima Animal Care Center. Serving a wider purpose still, the facility's location north of the U.S.-Mexico border positions it as a depository for the nation's largest collection of unidentified remains, most of which are thought to belong to undocumented migrants, as noted by Dr. Hess in statements released by the County's newsroom. Previously, a semi-trailer parked behind the old building was used to store these remains.
With the move to the new building, the PCOME is set to duly expand its storage capacity for these unidentified remains, streamlining efforts to identify them and hopefully reunite them with their families. This upgrade aims to not only perform its duty more efficiently but to also beautifully consolidate space and innovate the handling of these sensitive cases. Board of Supervisors Chair Adelita S. Grijalva acknowledged the invaluable contribution of data gathered by the PCOME to a range of government functions, which includes bolstering public health measures and aiding in the lawful pursuit of justice.
The new building's purpose is resonant with the county's growing need for comprehensive death-related services, from autopsy to identifying deceased individuals and facilitating organ donations. With the year drawing to a close, the PCOME staff is preparing to move into the facility, as Dr. Gregory Hess confirmed in a county interview, ushering in a new chapter aimed at delivering more effective and compassionate medico-legal inquiries. This move stands to significantly enhance the service capacity of an office critical to justice and public health in Southern Arizona.
