Things come alive at Nair mortuary

The typical dim, stinky and depressing look that is usually identified with a mortuary has been replaced by a swank centre at Nair Hospital.

And soon many other mortuaries might wear the refurbished look with this model set to be replicated across all municipal hospitals across the city and a few hospitals within the state.

The mortuary at Nair Hospital removed the 30-year-old tables, where autopsies were conducted, and replaced them with concrete platforms.

Even though the tables were cleaned after autopsies, blood stains remained and became the source of stink and infection.

It is a known fact that most hospitals rarely think about the health consequences of doctors as well as the staff spending close to 8-12 hours in the mortuary every day.

“We have installed special air-purifiers and sprinklers everywhere inside to get rid of the stench more than anything,” said Dr Shailesh Mohite, head, forensic medicine, Nair Hospital. “It is also a relief for relatives who claim the decomposed body hours after the death.”

He said special fly-killers have been installed to stop them from feeding on the bodies remain unclaimed for days. New covered trolleys to transport bodies have been brought in.

The centre has special sitting arrangements for relatives and a small area earmarked for rituals if families wanted to have any.

The mortuary has a capacity of 24 bodies but with a few more cold storages worth Rs2-3 lakh making its way; it would be able to accommodate another 10 bodies. Resident doctors who do post-mortems said the stench made their work really difficult.

“About 2-3 post-mortems are done on any given day so clean surroundings are an absolute must,” said Dr Pawan Sabale, a post-graduate student of forensic medicine at Nair Hospital. “Cleanliness also rules out chances of infection for doctors as well as the staff working here round-the-clock.”

Mohite said some hospitals have already been asked for new designs.