Relatively few people spend their last hours at home nowadays, with the majority of deaths occurring in hospitals, hospices and care homes. However, opting to die at home, in a familiar environment surrounded by close friends and family, is still a perfectly valid choice for anyone making their final preparations for the event.
Regulations for dying at home
Anyone who does make this choice, and their families, needs to be aware of the regulations that govern registering a death which occurs in the home. It can seem intrusive, but in order to be absolutely certain that all deaths in the home are due to natural causes, the government has very strict rules over how much medical supervision needs to take place.
The most important regulation to be aware of is that if the deceased has not seen their GP in the 14 days preceding the death, or has not seen by their GP immediately afterwards, then the case has to be referred to the coroner.
These regulations are extremely specific, in that they have to have been seen by the GP with whom they are registered, otherwise the case is still referred to the coroner. Another doctor from the same practice, or the most recent doctor to have seen them in hospital before the death, are not considered sufficient, even if they provided medical records which indicated the person had been given a terminal diagnosis.
Unfortunately, this requirement can be difficult to satisfy. If the person is very weak and frail then it may not be possible for them to make it to their doctor’s surgery, and arranging a home visit can prove unfeasible. Leaving it until they have actually died involves taking a risk, as if they pass away outside surgery hours – in the middle of the night or on a weekend – the surgery can easily send a different doctor, so the case will still be referred to the coroner.
The official process
If the deceased has not seen their GP in the fourteen days before their death, and the GP is not available immediately afterwards, then whoever does sign the death certificate will usually summon the police, who have a responsibility to make enquiries about all deaths which occur outside medical supervision.
They are likely to ask those who were with the deceased a few questions about the death, and then they will get the duty undertakers (the family has no say over which company performs this role) to deliver the body to the morgue at the local hospital, where the coroner will then deliver the verdict. There is the possibility, which will be distressing to some relatives, that a post-mortem may be performed if there is anything to investigate further. Only once this process has been completed are families allowed to get an undertaker of their choosing to collect the body from the morgue and make the funeral arrangements.
It is important to be prepared for this process, as otherwise it can seem immensely distressing to relatives who have been recently bereaved. Fortunately, as long as sufficient preparations have been taken, it is possible to make arrangements to avoid it.
If you would like to read about one woman’s experiences of dealing with a death at home, Victoria Moore’s article from The Telegraph about her grandmother’s death can be read here:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/9216777/My-granny-died-peacefully-and-then-our-nightmare-began.html
