Hide Transcript Show Transcript

VIRUS. THOSE FOLKS ARE THE FIRST RESPONDERS WERE THE LAST RESPONDERS, BUT YOU KNOW MY COLLEAGUES AND I WERE ALL DOCTORS. THESE ARE OUR PATIENTS SIGNING OFF ON EVERY MILWAUKEE COUNTY COVID F IS BRYAN PETERSON WALKING COUNTY’S CHIEF MEDICAL EXAMINER. WHY IS THAT IMPORTANT CLOSURE? I MEAN I FAMILIES WANT TO KNOWN TO KEEP THAT WORK GOING WITHOUT RISK. THERE’S BEEN STAFFING CHANGES NOW, WE’RE RUNNING IN ABOUT 1/3 TO 1/2 OF THAT ANY ONE TIME AND THE THOUGHT IS THAT IF SOMEBODY BRINGS THE PLAGUE TO THE OFFICE NOT EVERYBODY GETS SICK. BECAUSE ONE THING WE CAN’T DO IS SHUT THIS OFF AS DUMB AND SINCE THE PANDEMIC. STARTED IT’S BEEN PRETTY STEADY SINCE IT STARTED. I MEAN, YOU KNOW A FEW DAYS A FEW MORE A FEW DAYS A FEW LAST BUT BUT I THINK SINCE THIS ALL BEGAN MAYBE SIX OR SEVEN A DAY IS WHAT THE NUMBERS HAVE BEEN LIKE WE SEE A LOT MORE SPIKES WHEN IT COMES TO OVERDOSES THE NUMBERS INCLUDE INFORMATION. SO WE’RE TALKING IN GENERAL OLDER MORE SICK PEOPLE WHO AT ANY ANY GIVEN DAY MIGHT BE EXPECTED TO PASS AWAY ANYWAY, AND PERHAPS THIS INFECTION WITH COVID IS MAKING IT HAPPEN A BIT. SOONER THAN IT NORMALLY WOULD HAVE AND HE HAS A CONCERN CORONAVIRUS COULD BE CAUSING DEATH A DIFFERENT WAY. I THINK WE’RE GOING TO BE SEEING A LOT MORE SUICIDE. MAYBE EVEN A LOT MORE HOMICIDE RELATED TO UNEMPLOYMENT AND STRESS CAUSED BY EVERYTHING BEING SHUT DOWN. I SAW MY FIRST ONE YESTERDAY, BUT I’M EXPECTING TO SEE MORE OF TH

Advertisement Chief medical examiner fears coronavirus will lead to more homicides, suicides Brian Peterson says he's sees 6 or 7 COVID-19 deaths a day Share Shares Copy Link Copy

There have been more than 110 coronavirus deaths in Milwaukee County, and the man who has to sign off on all of them is Brian Peterson, chief medical examiner for Milwaukee County. Continuing Coverage: Coronavirus in Wisconsin"We’re the last responders. My colleagues and I, we're all doctors. These are our patients," Peterson said.The pandemic has forced staffing changes at the medical examiner's office. "Now we're running at about one-third to one-half of that, at any one time, and the thought is if any one person brings the plague to the office not everybody gets sick, because the one thing we can’t do is shut this office down," Peterson said. "It’s been pretty steady since it started, but I think since it all began, I think six or seven a day is what the numbers have been like. We've seen a lot more spikes when it comes to overdoses," Peterson said.The numbers include information."We're talking in general, older more sick people, who at any given day might be expected to pass away anyway and perhaps this infection with COVID is making it happen a bit sooner than it normally would have," Peterson said.He has a concern coronavirus could be causing death a different way. "I think we're going to be seeing a lot more suicides, maybe even a lot more homicides related to employment and stress caused by everything being shut down. I saw my first one yesterday but I’m expecting to see more of those," Peterson said. Sign up for coronavirus email alerts from WISNGet breaking news alerts with the WISN 12 app.Follow us: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube