Health
- Whether there is any protocol or procedure in place to be followed by the mortuaries and/or funeral parlours in the event of deaths due to COVID-19 virus; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?
The Department has provided guidelines to be followed in the event of someone dying due to COVID-19 at home or in a health facility.
The Forensic Pathology Service has taken the lead in training all interested role players as we feel that we have a public health responsibility although natural deaths do not fall within our mandate. We have been assisting the Undertaker services with the safe collection of the deceased’s but these cases are not admitted to the Forensic Pathology Laboratory.
The Forensic Pathology Service only deals with deaths due to unnatural causes of which a COVID-19 related death is a natural cause of death and would not normally be admitted to our Service. The Forensic Pathology Service is however making their expertise available to train Undertakers and Hospitals in the managing of these cases and this includes the correct Donning and Doffing of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), safe handling of a deceased person and the disinfecting of equipment, vehicles and ultimately the personal safety of this essential service. The planning being undertaken will ensure that every deceased will be handled with the utmost dignity and that the storage space will be sufficient.
