MADURAI: Citing difficulties in handling dead bodies wrapped in clothes after postmortem at the Government Rajaji Hospital (GRH) in Madurai, family members urged the hospital administration to cover the dead bodies in thick polythene covers as they did during the Covid-19 outbreak.
K Aandi (56) relative of a deceased said,"My relative died in a road accident last week. We took the body after postmortem from the GRH in Madurai city for completing funeral rites. After paying homage to the victim, we laid the body in the burial ground. However, we found blood on the table, where the body rested for a few hours. If the bodies are covered are placed in thick polythene covers, such spillage can be reduced."
Sources from the GRH said, "We receive around 10 bodies for postmortem daily. Such requests have been made by many people who visit the hospital to receive bodies of their friends and relatives after the postmortem."
Besides, some attenders waiting in the mortuary ward expressed discomfort over the staff forcing them to buy clothes from shops outside the hospital premises to wrap the bodies.
GRH Dean Dr L Arul Sundaresh Kumar said, "There is no definite procedure in the health department to cover the victims after postmortem with polythene bags. During COVID-19, victims were covered with plastic bags to prevent infection spread."
Speaking to TNIE, RMO and Mortuary Ward In-Charge Dr J Saravanan said,"When it comes to postmortem, the victim's body is completely stitched to avoid further damage or blood leakage. This a near perfect method and never lets out vital organs, even during transportation in the ambulance. Besides, the thick cloth covering the body from head to toe is very tight."
He also added that no staff is authorised to ask or order relatives to buy cloth from shops outside the premises. The cloth is available in the ward itself and anyone can lodge a complaint to the RMO office in this regard.