Mortuaries are specialized facilities that handle funeral arrangements. By following rules and being sensitive during planning, they can offer trustworthy services for families in tough times.
Like other legal fields, mortuary law covers regulations regarding the handling of bodies after death. This article will cover issues such as storage, embalming, and funeral arrangements.
Body Preparation
In a mortuary setting, bodies are embalmed to make them appear more life-like. First, a funeral director cleans the remains’ skin with a disinfectant spray or solution. He or she may then bathe the remains in a full or partial body wash. During the bathing process, funeral directors may also massage and flex the limbs to relieve rigor mortis.
The next step is arterial embalming, in which blood is drained from the arteries and replaced with formaldehyde-based fluid. This is followed by cavity embalming, in which a small incision is made in the abdomen and chest cavities. Organs are punctured with a tool called a trocar and filled with full strength embalming fluid.
During this process, funeral directors often remove any jewelry or medical devices (pacemakers). This is particularly important if the deceased chose direct cremation. The jewelry can melt during the cremation process, and the medical devices can be mistaken for ash after a brief period of time.
Funeral Services
When it comes to funeral services, mortuaries often offer a more streamlined version of full-service funeral homes. This can include a brief viewing for immediate family members, on-site cremation without elaborate memorialization options and a less extensive range of obituary services and arrangements.
The funeral home is typically responsible for organizing the funeral services in accordance with the wishes of the deceased or their next of kin. Depending on state law, this may involve an arrangement conference, funeral service and burial or cremation ceremony, urn interment, entombment in a mausoleum or companion crypt and a committal service.
Aside from the legal aspects of handling bodies, funeral directors also play a critical role in managing this transition with compassion and heart. Their goal is to help the grieving process by facilitating the chance to say goodbye and find closure. This can be a crucial step toward healing and moving forward.
Legal Requirements
Mortuaries must follow local, state and federal laws when it comes to preparing, transporting and disposing of the body. They also must have a license to operate and be inspected and approved by the appropriate authorities.
The majority of morgues are located within hospitals, care centers and hospices. Private mortuaries are owned and operated by funeral homes and can be used for some cases of death that occur outside a hospital or other care setting.
Traditionally, a funeral home is where memorialization services and viewings take place. However, some mortuaries offer cremation without the full range of memorialization services that a funeral home provides. This may be a way to cut costs for those interested in direct cremation. In addition, some mortuaries only have limited space and can’t accommodate large groups of visitors as well as a funeral home. As such, they focus more on the mortuary science of preparing a body for cremation or burial.
Cremation
When it comes to cremation, mortuaries can still offer services such as a viewing or visitation before the cremation occurs, but they may not offer the full range of options that funeral homes do. This is because the focus of a mortuary is not necessarily on memorialization services, but rather on mortuary science and on-site cremation.
Once the family has signed authorization to proceed, the body will be moved from the morgue to the primary cremation chamber. A stainless disc with a number or other identifier is then placed in the cremation container (or a temporary container if the family hasn’t yet selected an urn) and the cremation will be monitored for safety and accuracy.
After the cremation is complete, the ashes are returned to the family either in a temporary container or in a more permanent urn. The family can then choose to bury or scatter the ashes, or make some other special keepsake with them.