Overdose Fatality Review: Next-of-Kin Phone and Voicemail Guidelines

This publication by Overdose Fatality Review and the Comprehensive Opioid, Stimulant, and Substance Use Program (COSSUP) Resource Center provides guidance for handling next-of-kin phone and voicemail communications in the event of an overdose fatality. These guidelines were taken and adapted from the Utah Office of the Medical Examiner. This is a companion document to the resource Next-of-Kin Interviews: A Practitioner’s Guide to Implementation. Next-of-kin (NOK) interviewers should use this sample as a guideline for developing their agencies’ own guidelines for placing and receiving phone calls, setting up voicemail messages, and handling phone messages. The brief covers placing outbound phone calls, receiving inbound calls, voicemail, and taking messages.