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Mortuary Services helps those left behind by Heather Woolwine Public Relations Whether death is expected or not, loved ones experience grief. Some may not be privy to the many details related to placing a cherished individual’s remains to rest. These unknown details can serve as sources of anxiety and stress on top of grief. At MUSC, the Decedent Affairs/Mortuary Services team stands ready to care for those left behind.   “Many people are uncomfortable talking about death or dealing with it in general,” said Bob Gregowicz, Mortuary Services assistant coordinator and licensed funeral director. “We can’t make death a good experience, but we can definitely make it more comfortable by moving things along smoothly... so the family may find closure.”   Mortuary Services' goal is to ensure that all people and units involved with a death are notified and coordinated to promote the seamless release of the deceased from MUSC in the least amount of time.   “A lot of stereotypes persist about people who work in Mortuary Services, that all they do is push bodies on stretchers,” said Vinnie Della Speranza, Anatomic Pathology manager. “However, they serve as the primary contact for all South Carolina coroners (MUSC must provide storage for all coroners who lack storage availability or capabilities). As the primary contact point for all death activities at MUSC, they coordinate all medical/forensic autopsies, and they coordinate with outside agencies and funeral homes across the state to make sure that the deceased are carefully returned to the proper destination. They are experts in legal paperwork that pertains to death and what is needed to send bodies to other states or out of the country. Their job is so much more than arriving to pick up someone who has died.”   Most families are unfamiliar with legal and logistical particulars associated with death, and they need to know what should happen next in order to move the process along. As the most informed staff concerning these matters, the Mortuary Services team can provide answers to almost any question that comes up.   “All of our families are grateful to know that we are taking good care of their loved one once they are able to leave the hospital following that person’s death,” said Julius Fielding, Mortuary Services coordinator and licensed funeral director. “Mortuary Services is not a service for the dead; it is a service for the living. Death can be very traumatic, and it is our job to make a family’s memory picture as positive as it can be. We don’t want to add negativity to what is already a difficult thing to go through. We want to be remembered as people who helped ease the pain and anxiety about what happens next, and for helping with the arrangements.” A unique service Between Fielding and Gregowicz, the two men offer more than 40 years of experience in helping families navigate the issues attached to death. Most hospitals do not have a mortuary services team with licensed funeral directors. Consequently, many nurses and other staff members throughout the hospital have an incorrect or incomplete picture of MUSC's Mortuary Services. “We want people to think of us as part of the hospital team,” Gregowicz said. “We are providing continuity of care for the patient by caring for their living relatives. We’re more than we appear to be. Nurses and people working on the units have so much responsibility and so much to do. They can leave the responsibility of helping a family through the arrangements and paperwork by calling us. They don’t need to worry about it; that’s why we’re here and what we’re trained to do.”   In fact, a complication that often arises for the Mortuary Services team involves staff trying to answer questions about death certificates, funeral homes, or other logistical matters. Confusion and delays in releasing a family’s loved one are the result.   “There really is no need for nurses or physicians to try and locate funeral homes, or make statements regarding procedures that they are not totally sure about,” Fielding said. “We are prepared for about anything and have knowledge ranging from  the funeral homes in South Carolina to specific religious and cultural services and how those services might influence how we handle the body.”   “Sometimes families have questions and they don’t know who to ask. They aren’t going to necessarily discuss their financial situation with a nurse, in terms of paying for a funeral, as they will with a funeral director. Mortuary Services personnel have resources available to offer families that are limited in financial resources,” Gregowicz added.   Another complication that arises is untimely notification of death on a unit. While some staff believe a mortuary attendant will immediately take the person away, others wait to call the team because they are concerned about the family having enough time with the body. Both groups, according to Mortuary Services staff, are misled in these assumptions.   “We are trained not to approach families unless the timing is right. Each death is unique and presents different obstacles to getting remains released in a timely fashion. Coordination with nursing units and chaplains is key to insuring that bereaved relatives have ample time with the body to gain closure. We never hurry that process along,” Gregowicz said. “It can create big problems if we are notified long after a person has died. Family members who need information from us, and us from them, have gone home. They are the only ones who can answer specific questions needed to process important documentation to release the body in a timely manner. Without a death certificate, family members cannot start dealing with things like insurance, a will, access to bank accounts, burial, cremation and other things related to death. When these situations happen, it can contribute to lengthy delays and require a lot of detective work on our part.” Ideally, mortuary service team members would be contacted as soon as death becomes imminent.   “We each have our own view of the death process based on cultural, religious or societal beliefs,” Speranza said. “Some nurses might think that a conversation with a mortuary services staff member is inappropriate following a death, and they are trying to protect their patients, but patients don’t need to be protected from the mortuary services team. They are there to help.”   “We’re trained to be empathetic instead of sympathetic. Nurses often become very attached to their patients, so they are grieving too. I have become somewhat desensitized to the process so that gives me a little edge in dealing with it on a daily basis,” Fielding said. “I can’t do anything for the deceased, but I can help the living.”     The MUSC Mortuary Services team also provides autopsy services for nine counties in South Carolina and handles probate court cases involving people who die with no next of kin. “We view our profession as a singularly sacred and confidential calling that is done hundreds of times a year in a most professional and exact manner,” Gregowicz said. Fielding added, “We face death every day so we can make a difference for living families.”     To reach Mortuary Services, call 792-0590, and enter pager number 17025.     Friday, May 25, 2007 Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Island Publications at 849-1778, ext. 201.