St.John's Medical College Hospital Funeral Embalming

Anatomy Department - ST.JOHN’S MEDICAL COLLEGE HOSPITAL

1. What is Embalming?

Embalming is a method of preserving a dead body. In this procedure a chemical formulation is injected into the dead body through the blood vessels. This chemical in liquid form reaches every corner of the body and reacts with body tissues and thus causes preservation.

Embalming at St. John’s:

At St. John‘s Medical College, Bangalore, funeral embalming is undertaken by the Dept. of Anatomy as a public service commitment. The Department can be contacted either in person or by phone no: 080-49466333, Working hours: 9 am to 4.30 pm from Monday to Friday and from 9 am to 1 pm on Saturday- For embalming requests outside working hours contact Dr Stephen Dayal.S - (9845225103) and Mr. Satish - 9880962126

2. What kind of bodies are accepted for embalming?

Embalming is undertaken by the department for normal bodies where death has occurred due to natural causes. A copy of the death certificate must accompany the embalming request- for details refer to the section on documents required for embalming. Embalming is also undertaken for post-mortem cases where appropriate documents of clearance from the police department are produced.

3. How long can you keep an embalmed body?

The embalming we are practicing is based on chemical reaction between the chemicals used and the body tissues. Bodies so embalmed can be kept for fairly long time and most certainly this embalming will keep the body intact for the period up to the last rites of the individual. The bodies we use for teaching medical students in our department are preserved in the same chemicals for many years.

4. Is it necessary to keep ice on embalmed bodies?

As this is a chemical preservation, ice need not be kept over the embalmed body—provided the body is not decomposed prior to embalming. In case we are doubtful about the preservation (especially in post- mortem bodies and those where decomposition has already set in) specific advice to use ice packs as an additional precaution will be given.

5. When is embalming advised?

Embalming is advised if for any reason the last rites of the deceased are to be performed later than 24 hours after death. This is applicable in the summer months in Bangalore city. 6 hours extra margin (works out to 30 hours) may be given in winter months. If the delay is within 48 hours after death the body can be kept in the mortuary - here a body is cold preserved.

Embalming is a must if the body is to be transported over long distances by air/rail/road. A certificate of embalming, declaring the body fit for transportation is issued by the institution after embalming. This is to be produced for cargo clearance in the airlines and at the check post or surface transport.

In our experience most instances of embalming requests are 1. To keep the body preserved till the arrival of the close relatives of the deceased. 2. To transport the body to the home town of the deceased in India or' abroad.

6. How early should a body be embalmed after death to ensure good preservation?

Most requests for funeral embalming come to us within 6 hours of the death of the individual and this is a fairly adequate stage to embalm the body with good preservation of tissues. Ideally earlier the embalming better is the quality of preservation. However in our experience we have also received bodies as late as 48 hours or more. The quality of embalming in such cases is likely to be unsatisfactory as decomposition of the body would have set in. Decomposition is often noted in post-mortem bodies. Normally we inspect the body before taking it for embalming. Cases where the embalming will be unsatisfactory are clearly indicated to the relatives of the deceased. Please note that embalming cannot reverse the decomposition that has already set in. It only preserves normal non decomposed material.

7. Can the embalmed body be kept at home or elsewhere till the last rites are completed?

A body embalmed prior to onset of decomposition can be kept for any number of hours provided space at home is not a hindrance and also there is no public or police objection. We normally receive requests from the relatives to retain the body till they are ready for the funeral rites. Facilities exist to retain the body in the department of Anatomy if requested.

8. What are the disadvantages of Embalming?

Embalming is a useful preservation technique-it prevents decomposition-in the event that the last rites are delayed. Being a chemical preservation, a certain amount of darkening of the skin in noticed and is an unavoidable, uncorrectable limitation of the procedure. This varies from body to body and is particularly noticeable in fair skinned individuals. Also since fluid is injected into the body, a certain amount of generalised swelling of the body is inevitable- Swelling of the face may be particularly visible. Also the body will be hard to feel. We normally counsel the relatives about these points before undertaking the procedure.

9. Can’t we manage to keep the body in ice/mortuary and avoid embalming?

Yes, to a certain extent. This may help borderlines cases where funeral is delayed upto about 48 hours. However the body can be cold-preserved in a mortuary where there is a refrigerator which keeps the body in low temperature. This method can be opted if the last rites for the deceased will follow immediately after removal of the body from the mortuary. Once the mortuary preserved body returns to normal room temperature it will start deteriorating like any other body that is not preserved. Cold storage is therefore a temporary solution. Embalming makes the body preservable for a much longer period.

10. What documents are required for embalming?

A. For deaths due to natural causes a death certificate from a registered medical practitioner, or hospital or nursing home, mentioning clearly the cause and time of death in addition to the name, age and sex of the deceased. The document must bear the signature name (in capital letters) and medical council registration number of the doctor.

B. If it is the body of a foreign citizen: Clearance from the police department, together with Xerox copy of the passport pages bearing identification details of the deceased (photographs, name, age, sex and address).

C. For post-mortem bodies, clearance from the police department.

NOTE: ALL DOCUMENTS MUST BE SUBMITTED IN ORIGINAL TOGETHER WITH ONE PHOTO COPY. THE ORIGINAL will be immediately returned and the photo copy will be' retained for our records.

11. What are the documentation formalities required for an embalmed body to be transported by air?

 For taking the body to a distant city or state, a no objection certificate from the police department is required. Koramangala police station is the referral police station for this institution for any matter pertaining to embalming.  Contact the cargo manager of the airline you wish to transport the body.  For taking a body to a place outside the country-in addition to clearance from the police, the customs department must also be contacted for clearance. Customs officials may be contacted for this purpose at the Bangalore airport.

12. How the body is normally transported?

Transporting agencies accept embalmed bodies packed in a coffin. A coffin maker's certificate is necessary for transport by air. For details of coffin makers - Please refer the yellow pages of the telephone directory.

13. What are the charges for embalming and storage: The following charges are effective as on 1st July 2017: Embalming Charges: Rs. 4500.00 Retaining Charges: Rs. 600.00 per day if the body has to be kept in the anatomy department. Dressing charges: 1000.00 (optional)

Script: Dr. V. Balasubramanyam Professor and head Department of Anatomy ST. JOHN’S MEDICAL COLLEGE Sarjapur road, Bangalore 34