Families say victims were buried like animals... there’s a lot of hurt out there
»»Funeral director: Body bags inhumane »»Relatives plea for exhumation of dead
A FUNERAL director has told how grieving families of Covid-19 victims have asked for loved ones to be exhumed so they can be given a proper funeral.
David Mcgowan said the use of body bags is “inhumane” and “unnecessary” in the pandemic.
He added people have phoned him to tell him their relatives were buried “like animals”.
They were placed in their graves in the clothes they died in, in some cases in their pyjamas.
Mr Mcgowan said: “I’m conscious people are angry and there is a lot of hurt already out there.
“The deceased can’t speak for themselves so I feel I have to give them a voice.
“I’ve dealt with more than a dozen people who have died from Covid-19 and I’ve taken them all out of the body bag but with my colleagues we have cared for at least 100 Covid-19 deaths.
“People have heard me say I take out of the bodies and allow for the families to have their loved one dressed in their favourite clothes and to be able to see them and say a proper goodbye.
“Devastated people have phoned me and asked if they could get a body exhumed so they could get the send-off they deserve.”
INVITATION
Mr Mcgowan, who has more than 40 years’ experience, added he sent an invitation to organisations in the industry to up-skill and know what was needed in order to handle Covid-19 bodies in terms of embalming, Personal Protection Equipment and sanitation.
At least 80 showed up for the training which would allow mourners to have an open coffin once the funeral director and embalmers had the sufficient equipment.
In early March, the Irish Association of Funeral Directors issued guidelines and said those who died from Covid-19 had to be removed from the place of death in a body bag and placed into a sealed coffin.
They advised the deceased should not be embalmed but instead brought straight for burial.
On March 10, the chief medical officer Dr Tony Holohan said the measures recommended by the IAFD were “not necessary”.
The IAFD now directs mourners and funeral directors to a document HPSC report dated April 14.
It states after death, a body does not generally create a hazard and so far there is no evidence of transmission through the handling of corpses.
A body bag is not required for Covid-19 cases but it says for “other practical reasons” one can be used.
It states consensus opinion is embalming is not recommended. However, it acknowledges this recommendation is different in other jurisdictions.
Mr Mcgowan said it would be foolish to word it otherwise, in the absence of regulation. The European Centre of Disease Control states embalming
ADVICE Chief Medical
Officer Dr Tony Holohan can be performed. And it said the deceased can be viewed by mourners once using precautions and family members can wear gloves and a water resistant gown.
Mr Mcgowan, who is a founder and tutor of the Irish College of Funeral Directing and Embalming, added he and colleagues who have dealt with Covid-19 bodies wear the same PPE as doctors and nurses. He said 30,000 people die on this island each year and it’s
reported 1% pass away of an infectious disease so they are used to these precautions.
Mr Mcgowan, who runs Mcgowan’s Funeral Directors in Sligo, said: “In fairness to the HSE, they left it up to the funeral directors to use discretion.
DIGNITY
“We can’t be reckless and we have to be careful and professional.
“We must look after the living but also maintain the dignity of the deceased.
“A body that is properly, hygienically cleaned is much safer to the general public than one that’s in two body bags within a coffin.
“We seek advice from the professionals here and across the world and we follow these guidelines and we up skill and that’s exactly what we did.
“Why did we turn our backs on the deceased?
“We advise not to touch the body but if a grieving wife or husband says to me they want to touch their hand I’m not going to say no.
“Let the main spouse touch and I d get my bottle of hand sanitiser and I soak the hands. The danger is if you
let 20 do it, one of them might have it and leave coronavirus on the hand.”
Mr Mcgowan questions where the IAFD got the mandate in March to send “shockwaves with their measures because the HSE guidelines didn’t come out until near the end of March”.
He added he is conscious of the hurt that has been caused and feared speaking out could discredit him but he needs to stand up for the dead.
Speaking about the incident where a body was given to the wrong family at Regional Hospital Mullingar last month, he admitted he can see how it could happen. He added: “With the rules and regulations, if the funeral director isn’t taking that body out, well I could easily see how a mistake could happen.
ADVICE
“If a family member can’t identify that body. I don’t think anyone can deny losing a loved one is the toughest experience anyone will ever have to go through.
“Why wasn’t our expertise and advice listened to?“
A spokesman for the IAFD said: “We issued guidance to assist in preparation for the potential of Covid-19 related deaths in early March, based on research from observing other countries where the pandemic had taken a catastrophic hold.
“With protection paramount, the initial guidance was offered to members with the express aim of keeping them, their staff and deceased families safe and to mitigate any risk of spreading the virus.”
NOT to be able to give a dead loved one a proper send-off is something no person should go through.
But the stark reality is that as many people succumb to coronavirus suddenly, families are left trying to deal with a funeral in such an abnormal way.
So when funeral director David Mcgowan told the Irish Mirror that some families have asked for their loved ones to be exhumed so they can be given a proper funeral, it did not come as a great surprise.
Gone are the open-casket wakes where people would gather to share stories, shed tears and laugh at memories of the deceased with loved ones who you may not see too often.
There were worries in March that remains would be put into body bags rather than being embalmed due to the killer coronavirus spreading.
Times remain uncertain and difficult and there is no doubt that those who have been unable to give their loved one a proper send-off will grapple with the fact for years to come.
Things will remain tough for a long time but as a country where a person’s send-off is steeped in tradition, we can look forward to brighter days where we can celebrate the lives of our loved ones over a cup of tea and a slice of cake.