Donating body to science

izoomzoom

Haven't come across this before (except one thread now closed).

My mother wishes for her body to be donated to science when she passes.

She has registered this with two medical schools, one covering the area where she lives, and the other in the area where I live.

The medical schools do state that there are some exceptions and this is where I was wondering how often the body is not accepted.

And, would it be worthwhile taking out a funeral plan. Would it be refundable if not used, or could it be transferred to another family member (who doesn't want donation).

Sorry if this sounds at all distasteful.

belisha-beacon

I don't know about the funeral plan bit of your question, though I would imagine it would depend on the Ts&Cs of the individual plan (My guess is it wouldn't pay out if no funeral was needed. It's not a common enough occurrence for it to be a 'selling point' for a policy, and other than being able to reach a wider market there's no incentive for a provider to add extra reasons they'd have to pay out) She might want to consider a straightforward savings plan instead maybe - then if a funeral is needed, the money can be used and if not it is a nice legacy.

I can help with the other bit though, as I've looked into donation myself. There's a good Q&A online https://www.hta.gov.uk/faqs/body-donation-faqs and the medical schools normally have specific members of staff dealing with donation who are happy to answer queries.

It does depend a bit on the exact medical schools as they all have their own policies, but the most important thing to note is that most medical schools will reject a body if it has been subject to a post-mortem. Sorry for the detail, but it is basically because it is not realistic for students to learn about anatomy if the body they have to dissect is already dissected. They may also reject incomplete or non-standard bodies, for example if someone has acquired a muscular or skeletal disability during their lifetime, or had an amputation.

So, anyone donating their body needs to think about the possibility of a funeral if they die unexpectedly in a way that would lead to a post mortem. Sorry this is all a bit grisly...

belisha-beacon

Sorry - I also forgot to say that the medical schools will also often reject bodies if you don't die in the right area. Certainly the one I am signed up with has noted that it has to pay refrigerated transport costs to get the body to them, and they have said that except where there is extreme demand for specimens then they will be unlikely to go out of area, because of the administrative and other costs.

tooldle

I have some limited experience of this process. My parent was registered with a local medical school. A funeral plan was still needed for the body to be stored if the death occurred at a weekend. In our case, the local school was full. However they were good enough to phone around other Univerisites to find one in a position to accept, if I was prepared to cover the transportation costs.
Something else to consider is the exclusions to acceptance in the event of death. My mum has a donation arrangement in place, but has subsequently developed dementia. Dementia is one of the diseases listed as "not accepted" by the medical school she is registered with.

meritaten

would you not have a 'memorial service' of some kind or a wake? the funeral plan - or perhaps just money set aside for such - could also be used to perhaps put a memory plaque or seat or somesuch or could be donated to charity. it would make sense to have money put aside to cover funeral costs if your mothers wish doesn't happen.

Mojisola

tooldle wrote: »

A funeral plan was still needed for the body to be stored if the death occurred at a weekend.

You need a plan to deal with the possibilities but not a paid up 'funeral plan' because the money won't be refunded if a funeral isn't needed.

Tuesday_Tenor

Something no one else has mentioned:

Isn't it the case that if the body is donated to a MEDICAL SCHOOL then a medical student usually works with the same body for (part of) the duration of their course, but after that the remains are returned for cremation/burial? So that also has to be planned for by the family. I imagine most families would have a memorial service/wake for all friends and family fairly soon after the death, and a simple burial/cremation a few years later.

I've no idea whether the same applies for bodies donated for OTHER RESEARCH.

belisha-beacon

meritaten wrote: »

would you not have a 'memorial service' of some kind or a wake?.

Tuesday_Tenor wrote: »

Something no one else has mentioned:

Isn't it the case that if the body is donated to a MEDICAL SCHOOL then a medical student usually works with the same body for (part of) the duration of their course, but after that the remains are returned for cremation/burial? So that also has to be planned for by the family.

Most medical schools include paying for a memorial service after death, and a funeral after the body is returned several years later. Families are often also invited to services of thanksgiving done by the students once a year, where the people who donated their bodies to support science are remembered, and they can be quite touching. So, if the body is accepted by the medical school, no money is needed by the family for a funeral or memorial. It is still sensible to plan for the provision of a funeral if the body is not accepted though - that's where the problem arises, because you don't know in advance if it will be or not.

AMILLIONDOLLARS

I have heard that you can request the body back after use! So you will need to plan for this.

AMD

bongonaut

Mojisola wrote: »

You need a plan to deal with the possibilities but not a paid up 'funeral plan' because the money won't be refunded if a funeral isn't needed.

The usual position with a proper pre-paid funeral plan (rather than a whole of life insurance product) is that if a funeral is not required, the original amount paid (less any admin/cancellation fees) would be refunded to the estate or family of the deceased. Be clear about what type of 'funeral plan' you may be buying, and what the T's & C's are for cancellation or refund.