Donation and Respect for the Body

Question 1

Outline the process of donation and the Human Tissue Act regulations involved

Answer 1

Human Tissue Act in 2004:

• This law made explicit consent a legal requirement for the removal, storage, and use of human tissue, including organs, for purposes such as research or teaching
• The act created the Human Tissue Authority, responsible for regulating the removal, storage, and use of human tissue in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland
• Medical professionals and hospitals were now required to obtain informed consent from families before retaining any organs or tissues during post-mortem examinations.

Question 2

Recognise the medico-legal context under which dissection occurs

Question 3

Appreciate the historic controversies relating to organ retention

Answer 3

1752: The Murder Act was passed, which allowed the bodies of executed murderers to be used for dissection

• This act was intended to increase the supply of bodies for dissection while serving as a deterrent to crime
• The act reinforced the stigma around dissection, as it was often viewed as an extension of the punishment for criminals

Body Snatching: Due to the limited legal supply of bodies, a black market for cadavers developed

• Resurrectionists, or body snatchers, exhumed recently buried corpses to sell them to medical schools for dissection

The Burke and Hare Murders (1828): In Edinburgh, two men, William Burke and William Hare, were involved in the murder of at least 16 people in order to sell their bodies to anatomists.

• Sold to Robert Knox

1832 Anatomy Act: In response to the growing concerns about body snatching and the criminal supply of cadavers, the British government passed the Anatomy Act of 1832.

• This law allowed unclaimed bodies, particularly those from workhouses, hospitals, and lower-class families, to be used for dissection
• It also provided more legal oversight for the acquisition and use of cadavers in medical schools, effectively ending the need for body snatching

Alder Hey / Bristol Heart Scandal

• Improved patient consent and transparency
• Enhanced medical oversight and the introduction of clinical governance to ensure higher standards of care and accountability in hospitals
• Stricter regulations on organ retention

Question 4

Outline and accept the moral responsibilities relating to cadaveric dissection

Question 5

Appreciate the need for a balance between intellectual detachment and emotional engagement

Question 6

Appreciate a personal perspective of a family member’s decision to donate their body to medical science

Question 7

How are bodies embalmed

Answer 7

• Incision sites can be found on the scalp and the right thigh
• Superior sagittal sinus - venous fluid access
• Right femoral artery - Arterial fluid access
• 20L of Thiel embalming fluid is introduced to into the body to preserve the tissue
• Bodies have 6 tags placed on both ears, thumbs and big toes