ِإِنَّا لِلَّهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَ
‘Indeed, to Allah we belong and to Him we will return’
Step 1: Contact
Steps to take following expected death of a loved one in hospital.
- Contact the funeral Director on : 01383 229479
- Make them aware of the demise of your loved one.
Please Note: You should not announce the time of the funeral until you have confirmed it with the funeral director.
Step 2: Cause of death certificate
- Obtain a signed Cause of Death Certificate from your medical attendant
- The cause of death certificate will need to be taken to the registrar office to register the death. Your GP will normally email this to them directly.
- The registrar office will then issue a death certificate and burial document.
Please Note: There can sometimes be a delay in getting this certificate, especially if the death occurred during the night or at the weekend.
Step 3: Release Body from Hospital
- The burial document and the release note issued by the hospital attendant will allow the funeral director to collect the body from the hospital mortuary ( this needs to be obtained by the family).
Step 4: Funeral Director Arrangements
The following arrangements will be made by the funeral director.
If you have any special requirements please do not hesitate to contact the funeral director on the number above.
- The body will be collected from the hospital or home by the funeral director
- The grave will be ordered at your chosen cemetery and preparations for ghusl (religious bathing) will be made.
Step 5: Ghusl
The body will be bathed according to Islamic law. You and your family members can take part in this bathing if you wish to do so.
- The body will then be draped in plain white sheet (Kafan)
- The body is now ready for funeral prayer and burial or repatriation to another country.
Step 6: Janazah Prayer
Once the body has been washed and shrouded, it will be taken to the front of the mosque, the imam will then recite the janazah prayer and make supplication for the deceased.
Step 7: Burial
The funeral prayer is prayed and the body is then taken to the cemetery for burial or the airport for repatriation to another country.
Sequence of events following expected death at home
An expected death means that the deceased was either:
- Suffering from a terminal illness or a long term illness
- For a GP to manage a death as an ‘expected death’ and issue a Cause of Death Certificate, they need to have seen the deceased in the last two weeks of their life.
- If in the event a GP is not available, please contact the emergency doctor who can issue a confirmation of death certificate – this will allow the funeral director to collect the body from the house to the mortuary.
- If the GP has not seen the deceased in the last two weeks they my need to discuss the case with the coroner/reviewer.
Sequence of events following an unexpected death at home or hospital
Unexpected death means that the deceased was fit and healthy and did not have any major medical problems and has suddenly died following an accident of any kind.
- Every unexpected death is referred to the coroner
- The hospital doctor or GP will discuss the case with the coroner
- The coroner will investigate the death and there are three outcomes of this investigation:
- Coroner thinks death is natural ( Coroner can ask the GP/Dr for the cause of death certificate)
- Coroner thinks death is unnatural and requests a post mortem.