Laurie Summers: Will Co. Coroner 2020 Election Candidate

Laurie Summers is seeking to win the March 17 Democratic primary against Bolingbrook Police Sgt. Sean Talbot in her bid to become the next Will County Coroner. After seven terms in office, Patrick K. O'Neil announced late last year that he would not seek another four-year term. O'Neil is endorsing Summers, who previously served on the Will County Board and now works as a deputy coroner for O'Neil.

Here are Summers' answers to a questionnaire Patch submitted to her.

Age: 61

Town/City of Residence: Crete

Office Sought: County

Party Affiliation: Democrat

Family: My Husband Michael and I raised our three children in Will County. Alicia (40) and her husband Jason live in Indiana where they are raising our two grandchildren Paige(16) and Tyler(12). Our son Jerry(38) and his wife Jillian live in Crete where they are raising our other two grandchildren Michael (4) and Elizabeth (Izzy 3). Jerry and Jillian are expecting their third child in July. Our youngest child Caitlyn (30) and her husband Tim also live in Indiana where they are raising our two grand-dogs Titan and Sully. Michael and I could not be more proud of them. They are incredible parents and the best Auntie and Uncles, they love one another and understand family always comes first. Our children are why we breathe!

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

My sister Wendie Garlich is the Mobility Manager for Will County. She oversees providing transportation for Will County residents in the under served areas of Will County. This service provides rides for our Seniors, Disabled and transportation for people seeking work. Wendie has been in this much needed position since 2012.

Education: I grew up in Beecher and attended Zion Lutheran School, graduated from Beecher High School and I am a proud graduate of the Prairie State College Nursing program.

Occupation: Registered Nurse for 24 years

Campaign website: summersforcoroner.com

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office: I served on the Will County Board from 2016-2019. When I accepted the job at the Coroners office as Deputy Chief Coroner I stepped down from my position on the County Board.

The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

With the increasing population in Will County which is 700,000 plus residents, our office handles and takes calls on over 3,400 cases annually. Obtaining additional space for the Coroners office based on these figures is important. Because I have the background of serving on the County Board I understand the process or steps needed to accomplish this. In 2002 our Coroner Pat O'Neil obtained the space for our current morgue, since then our population in Will County has increased exponentially and we have outgrown our space. I have already begun the process of obtaining a new space by reaching out to the County departments that are critical in making this happen. I also reached out to the Public Heath and Safety Committee, which I Chaired on the County Board, by doing that two of our Deputy Coroners and myself spoke and began the process of addressing the Coroners needs and brought awareness to the day in and day out functions of the Coroners office. I requested at that time that the Coroners office be placed on the monthly agenda so we are able to provide the County Board members with current statistics on the deaths and types of deaths we are faced with at the Coroners office.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

I want to give you a bit of a History lesson since December 11th 1896 the position of Coroner in Will County has been held by a person with medical or science(Mortuary Science) background. There is a reason for that.

Second history lesson My opponent spoke about investigating SIDS( Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) we have not had a SIDS death in over 10 years why because what they classified as SIDS was found to be more often than not a parent rolling over on their child while sleeping in the same bed with the infant or placing an infant in a bed with pillows and blankets, laying the infant on their stomach or something called positional asphyxiation. These deaths are no longer classified as a syndrome but as accidental. The term is SUID, Sudden Unexpected Infant Deaths, these are deaths that occur in infants less than a year old.

My opponent has indicated that my medical background does not apply to this position, "She is just a nurse" "she took care of sick people" I wish that was all my job consisted of, contrary to what he is trying to portray, death and dying was part of the job. Notifying families of the loss of their loved one was part of the job, holding the hand of someone who was dying and had no family around was part of the job, I did this with compassion and respect in other words I treated everyone the way I would want my loved one to be treated. Compassion is the key to make you a good Nurse and Coroner because no matter the circumstance of death the deceased and their families deserve respect and dignity.

I feel my extensive background as a registered nurse working in every aspect of the profession from the floor to administration is the qualification that is required, as eighty percent of our cases are medical/natural deaths. If a doctor will not sign a death certificate it is the Coroners job to investigate and find the cause, that requires researching hundreds of pages of Medical records and understanding terminology which is second nature to me. As the current Deputy Chief Coroner I work hand in hand with our current Coroner to find that cause.

The other twenty percent of the cases are homicides ,suicides, overdoses, motor vehicle accidents and unnatural deaths. This is where the Autopsies, Pathologists, States Attorney and Law Enforcement come into play. In these types of deaths (excluding unnaturals) the cause is easier to explain, but as a policy our pathologists do the autopsies and send the findings to the Coroner who again is responsible to indicate the cause and manner of death. The Coroners office works with Local, County and State law enforcement on a daily basis as they do their death investigations in these cases. We also work with the States Attorney on providing pertinent information relating to these cases.

The unnatural deaths also require the expertise and input from our pathologists, in the background the Coroner is again researching any and all medical records pertaining to the case if available. During the time I have been at the Coroners office I have helped during autopsies, went on field calls, made notification to family members and contacted each family of cause of death when determination is completed.

I bring that knowledge to the table.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

The other pressing issues are the Opioid Crisis and Mental Health Crisis. As a Nurse I recognized more than a decade ago that there was an issue. I reached out to State and County officials and voiced my concerns. Because of my medical background and my experience in Behavioral Health I was able to address the connection between addiction and mental health. I fiercely championed these causes during my time on the County Board and worked with our County Health Department and Dr Kathleen Burke on bringing awareness through education and obtaining grants which have expanded services to the under served areas in the County.

I reached out to Dr. Kathleen Burke and she has trained the Deputy Coroners on how to effectively use Narcan this is a medication used to block the effects of Opioids. I have been part of the Hero Helps as a volunteer and I am currently a committee member. This committee of people, have been instrumental in bringing awareness to this on going Crisis through education and by working to bring together the elected officials and Will County families who have been affected by this crisis. Will County has been on the forefront of this and I am proud to say that I was part of that as a Will County Board member. Our Court system has also stepped up to the plate by instituting a Drug Court. Our States Attorney Jim Glasgow recognized that incarceration is not the answer, the answer is to be proactive instead of reactive. But the fight continues, we now have a game changing drug in our midst, a synthetic(man made) drug called Fentanyl this drug is lethal in very small doses, as little as 0.25mg(the size of a grain of salt) can be fatal. It can be used in a variety of ways orally, by nasal and oral spray, injectable and by transdermal patch. What is most scary is that it can be absorbed through the skin which puts our first responders and Deputy Coroners at huge risk when they are called to a scene that involves this drug. We need to be proactive in fighting this new and devastatingly lethal drug. I will work tirelessly to find ways to combat this new crisis by researching federal and state grants that are available and that apply to the Coroners office.

I recently had the privilege of sitting on a Forum hosted by Mothers of Professional Basketball Players at UIC. The attendee's were two busloads of Joliet Central and Joliet West High School students. I spoke openly and honestly about the role the Coroners office plays in the Opioid and Mental Health Crisis's we face in Will County, these kids also spoke openly and honestly about their concerns regarding this. Their questions to the panel were an indicator that they were listening to everything we spoke too. This is just the beginning of educational programs I would like to see instituted for our youth, if we can minimize the loss of life due to Overdoses or Suicide by early proactive intervention it will be a good day for all Will County residents . That will only happen with the help of our County Board Members and Departments that play a vital role in bringing this to the forefront, I have proven by my work on the County Board that I get things done.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

As the current Deputy Chief Coroner I will be able to make a seamless transition to leadership. In my time at the Coroners office I have received three certifications in Medical-Legal death investigations. My diverse background in Nursing included ER, Pediatrics, ICU, PICU NICU , Oncology, Cardiolgy, Nephrology, Medical-Surgical, Home Health and Hospice. How I was able to accomplish this was because I was one among 40 nurses that covered two hospitals where there was a need. I never knew where I would be placed each day until I called in to the House supervisor, any Nurse will tell you this is a very difficult thing to do, you have to have the ability to handle all situations that arise on each and every floor that we were assigned to. I was able to do those transitions with ease.

I was asked to pilot a program for an admission unit at the hospitals I covered. So for almost a year I single-handedly ran this program. My hard work paid off as the pilot warranted the need for an admission unit and from that a 24 bed admission unit was instituted.

I was a Core User and instructor on implementing EMR(Electronic Medical Records) in our hospitals. From there I was instrumental in instructing on the new technology for medication safety, I also wrote policy and procedure for medication safety. I served on the Shared Governance Board as Chair of Quality Assurance were I was responsible for implementing policy and procedure for best practices. I have received certifications in BLS, ACLS, PALS and NALS. I was also an instructor for BLS and ACLS .

I then chose to become an Administrator over two Home Health Agencies which included over sight of 45 employees.

Everyone of these skills apply to the Coroners position.

If you win this position, what accomplishment would make your term in office as a success?

Combining the morgue and office into one building. Instituting a robust continuing education program for our Deputy Coroners to keep them up to date on current best practices. Increasing the amount of Deputy Coroners as our County continues to grow and the caseloads increase every year. Working with NaMUS, to help our cold case squad identify the 11 unidentified subjects we currently have, dating back to 1968. We can accomplish this by providing the cold case squad with access to latest and best technology that is available. Utilizing Social Media to keep citizens and media informed.

Why should voters trust you?

The voters have shown their trust in me by electing me twice to the County Board an I was top vote getter in those races. My fellow County Board Members showed their trust in me by electing me to be President of the Will County Forest Preserve District. I have always prided myself in doing the right thing, which is not always the easy thing. I have always looked out for the best interest of this entire County, members of my family live in this County too, decisions that I made impacted them as well as every other family in this County. I took on that responsibility with the commitment to represent all families in Will County in a thoughtful, honest and trustworthy way.

What are your views on fiscal policy, government spending and the use of taxpayer dollars in the office you are seeking?

As a former County Board I have a proven track record of being fiscally responsible with Will County tax payers dollars, I feel tax dollars are well spent if the office has well trained personnel, the most current technology that helps with the case load and current updated office equipment. I have and will continue to seek out grant funding and work with the County Government to ensure that the Coroners office remains fiscally responsible by using the current permitting fee's we bring in through the Coroners office to offset the cost of these operating expenses.

Is there any reason you would not serve your full term of office, other than those of health or family?

My plan is to complete the entire term and seek one additional term to complete the goals I want to accomplish for the Coroners office.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

By the way while I was filling this out Mike and I were told our next grandchild is a girl!!