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B. Pathology and Morgue

• 1) Separate holding areas have been created for fetal remains being discharged to funeral homes or families, and those remains designated for disposal by the Medical Center.
• 2) Autopsy personnel no longer have keys to the Morgue and must be admitted by staff administrators. There is also a sign-in and sign-out procedure for Morgue keys needed by transporters delivering remains to the Morgue.
• 3) A camera has been installed in the Morgue to monitor the proper performance of procedures in that area.
• 4) As an interim measure, staff administrators now are present at and responsible for all releases of remains from the Morgue. Removal of the drawer card in the Morgue is the responsibility of the staff administrator at the time of release.
• 5) The pick-up log in Labor and Delivery has been redesigned to separate the documentation of the release of a fetus to the Morgue from the request for transport of a placenta specimen to pathology.
• 6) Only when a placenta cannot be separated from the fetus will it be sent to the Morgue. These remains will be placed in a single body bag, not a plastic specimen container.
• 7) Remains must now be transported from the unit where death occurred to the Morgue within two hours of death, unless the grieving family requests a longer time to remain with the body.
• 8) The staff administrator now releases fetal remains designated for cremation by the Medical Center from the Morgue weekly, or as needed, to the designated pathology/autopsy staff member who is currently responsible for cremation.