Report on Fu Shan Public Mortuary Incident released
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    The Independent Committee set up to inquire into the Fu Shan Public Mortuary incident released its investigation report today (March 23), concluding that human error was the main cause of the incident in which the body of a 90-year-old man was mistakenly claimed and cremated by the family of another deceased person.

     The three-member committee was appointed by the Director of Health, Dr PY Lam, after the incident came to light on March 7, 2006, to look into the case and recommend measures to prevent recurrence of a similar incident.

     The committee comprised Mr Wan Chi Keung (Convenor), Ms Nora Yau and Ms Jasminia Cheung, all senior administrators in private or non-government organisations.

     Speaking at a press conference today, Mr Wan said the committee found the mortuary staff concerned had not followed established working procedures for identification of bodies before releasing the bodies to families.

     "This was followed by their attempt to cover up the incident by moving the other body to another rack and removing the identification bracelet," he said.

     However, the committee noted that a clear set of operational guidelines was in place in respect of the receipt, identification and release of bodies in public mortuaries.

     In its report, the committee recommended a package of short, medium and long term improvement measures in a number of areas including:

* Staffing of mortuaries
* Training and supervision of mortuary staff
* Body identification procedures
* Improvements to mortuary and funeral facilities

     Accepting the findings and recommendations, Dr Lam expressed his gratitude to the committee for its dedicated efforts in completing the investigation in a very tight schedule and thanked them for their practicable recommendations.

     Dr Lam offered his apologies to the two affected families and said he fully understood their sorrow and the inconvenience caused by the incident.

     "Department of Health staff have been in close contact with the two families to offer assistance," he added.

     Dr Lam said the department was committed to implementing all the recommended measures in the report to prevent future recurrence, adding that short term recommendations of the committee were being implemented to improve the operation of public mortuaries.

     Immediate measures had been taken right after the incident, including reminding the medical staff to step up supervision and monitoring of the compliance of mortuary operation procedures.

     All staff of public mortuaries have also been briefed again on the working procedures and reminded to exercise due care in double-checking the identity of every body before handing it over to the family concerned.

     Relatives will be asked to view the bodies and check the particulars on the identification bracelets of the bodies before collecting them.

     Based on the findings of the committee, Dr Lam said disciplinary action was being considered against the mortuary staff concerned.  Copies of the report will be sent to the Department of Justice and the police for their advice.

Ends/Thursday, March 23, 2006
Issued at HKT 18:35

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