The vision of a nurse-coroner. A "protector of the living through the investigation of death".

1. The coroner must possess medical knowledge to make judgments based on symptomatology, history, post-mortem appearance, toxicology, and other diagnostic studies combined with evidence revealed by other aspects of the investigation. 2. One role of the nurse-coroner is providing the families of the deceased what they need to survive the death in terms of factual information, accuracy in the determination of cause and manner of death, and psychological and, sometimes, physical support. 3. Nurse-coroners are the facilitators of information that is learned from the dead, so that living members of society will have healthier, happier, longer lives.