Thomas Rudd: Candidate Profile

Note: Answers provided have not been edited for grammar, misspellings or typos. In some instances, candidate claims that could not be immediately verified have been omitted. Jump to:BioKey IssuesQA Bio City: Lake ForestWebsite: http://drtomruddforcoronerOffice sought: Lake CoronerAge: 65Family: marriedOccupation: Self employed physician and surgeon licensed in Illinois practicing Pathology and Nuclear Medicine.Education: Doctor of Medicine, University of Illinois, 1974 Masters of Science in Microbiology and Virology, Loyola University of Chicago, 1972. Bachelors of Science in Psychology, Loyola University of Chicago, 1969Civic involvement: Producer and Co-host of radio program for KZFR, Chico, California for over ten years. This is a community owned radio station which is a nonprofit organization that does not accept paid commercials. It is owned and operated by the community and all programmers and hosts are not paid. We are all volunteers. Work with the Hmong community of Northern California in assisting them in understanding why autopsies are sometimes essential. They have religious concerns regarding allowing postmortems. I and an associate have set up guidelines that allow examinations in accordance with their religious beliefs. We have authored a paper and produced a cd with the guidelines. This cd has been used by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in Washington, DC.Elected offices held: Ran for Lake County Sanitary District twice (as a Democrat) in early 2000 and lost.Have you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain: no!Candidate's Key Issues Key Issue 1 Establish and insure excellence in the science of forensic medicine by developing core competencies with all death investigations. This will be done by establishing measurable standards for the office which are nationally recognized and accepted by the forensic medicine death investigation societies and associations, i.e., National Association of Medical Examiners and the American Board of Medical-Legal Death Investigators for the deputy coroners. By following established national standards every death investigation will be based on current competent scientific medical expertise.Key Issue 2 Right now the office is operating as an extension of law enforcement. This can prove to be a flaw that may present conflicts of interest. I promise that all death investigations will be nonpolitical and neutral without any hint of conflicts of interest. As Coroner I will affirm a cordial and collegial, but impartial relationship with other death investigation organizations of the countyKey Issue 3 Fiscally responsible. Establish a budget to complete our mission and live within that budget.Questions Answers The last two coroners (Keller and Wipper) ended their service in controversy. How will you professionalize the office to prevent scandal and boost public service? Be specific.Lead by example from the top. Demand staff accountability for personal behavior and actions. Hold all coroner's staff to the highest standards which include: personal integrity, ethics, and knowledge based investigations.Establish and expand existing relationships with other agencies and focus groups engaged in death investigation and in decreasing accidental deaths such as: 1. Dept. of Public Health 2. Child Death Review Team 3. Elder Death Review Team 4. Correct children's car seat installation advocacy. 5. Trauma Audit Committees at regional designated hospital Trauma Centers.What is the most important aspect of the coroner's job? How will you handle that task better than your opponents' Please explain in detail.To correctly and accurately establish the Cause and Manner of Death of any individual who comes under the coroner's jurisdiction. As a medical doctor I bring my training, experience, and ability to separate the wheat from the chaff in identifying the Cause of Death upon review of medicalrecords or a limited external examination of the deceased. As a medical doctor I must decide upon those cases which truly need to undergo forensic autopsy and those which do not.What aspects of the office do you believe needs improvement? Be specific.TRAINING. As Coroner I will insure that all of the deputy coroners have adequate training and education in the death investigation to do their job efficiently, accurately, and economically. Training is a continuous process requiring constant updating.STANDARDS. I want to see the coroner's office work towards and achieve nationally recognized standards of forensic medical death investigation assuring the citizens of Lake County the highest level of excellence. I will initiate steps towards achieving both National Association of Medical Examiners and the American Board of Medical-Legal Death Investigators certification for both the office and coroners staff.Does the office do much in the way of comforting crime victims' families' Please explain. If not, should that be a role of the coroner's office?The role of the coroners office is already defined under existing law. While it is not the primary mission of the office under law to comfort the families of decedents coming under the coroner's jurisdiction, it is simple human compassion to offer sympathy and comfort to a grieving loved one, relative, or friend. As coroner, I would insist that the entire coroner's staff be sensitive to the families and next of kin that we serve. Those may be the parents of babies who have died suddenly and unexpectedly (such as Sudden Infant Death or Sudden Unexplained Infant Death); a family who objects to a forensic autopsy based on religious beliefs; an elderly widow, alone, following the passing of her husband of 50 years;the victim of a traffic accident whose life was lost in a blink of an eye; or the family of a senseless violent crime.At any person's worst possible time in their life, losing someone they love, we at the coroners office must make sure that we continue to do our best job possible.Does the coroner need to be a medical doctor? Why or why not? Please explain in detail.OBVIOUSLY, YES! The coroner should and MUST be a medical doctor. As an experienced board certified physician specializing in both Pathology and Nuclear Medicine I am able to use my extensive medical training and experience to deal with other physicians on equal footing. I can independently evaluate medical, surgical, therapeutic and hospital records deciding whether a particular death might require further examination by the coroner's office or perhaps a full forensic autopsy. Who would you want to review your loved one's medical records and manner of death to decide if an autopsy is necessary? An experienced board certified physician-pathologist or a lay person with no training or experience in the science of medicine? Its obvious isn't it?