Human Tissue (Transplantation, Post-Mortem, Anatomical Examination and Public Display) Act 2024
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Chapter 2 Consent and post-mortem activities | ||
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Consent - general provisions | ||
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41. (1) For the purposes of this Part— | ||
(a) (i) post-mortem consent shall be in writing and shall be signed by the person giving the consent in the presence of one witness who shall attest the person’s signature, or | ||
(ii) in a case where the person cannot provide consent in writing, post-mortem consent may be given orally by the person in the presence of two witnesses each of whom shall attest that the person gave consent, | ||
(b) (i) subject to subparagraph (ii) post-mortem consent in relation to a post-mortem activity may, at any time, be withdrawn or amended in the manner specified in subparagraph (i) or (ii) of paragraph (a), and | ||
(ii) post-mortem consent in relation to a non-coronial post-mortem examination or the recording of such examination may, at any time prior to the commencement of that post-mortem examination, be withdrawn or amended in the manner specified in subparagraph (i) or (ii) of paragraph (a), | ||
(c) post-mortem consent given by a person is given, and given only, for the purposes of the post-mortem activities, specified in the consent concerned, | ||
(d) where post-mortem consent is given by a person for the purposes of the post-mortem activities specified in the consent, it shall not be necessary to seek consent in respect of subsequent use provided that the use is only for the purposes specified in the consent concerned, | ||
(e) a copy of a post-mortem consent, together with a copy of any withdrawal or amendment of the consent shall be— | ||
(i) retained with the medical records of the deceased person or, in the case of a foetus, in accordance with the procedures of the hospital concerned and any guidelines made in that regard, | ||
(ii) retained with the records of the hospital where the non-coronial post-mortem examination occurred for such period as shall be prescribed in regulations under section 40 , and | ||
(iii) made available to the person who gave the consent, | ||
and | ||
(f) post-mortem consent may be limited to— | ||
(i) the non-coronial post-mortem examination and the burial, cremation or return, in accordance with regulations under section 40 (2)(a), of any part of a body removed as part of that non-coronial post-mortem examination, other than any tissue removed and retained in accordance with section 43 (3), | ||
(ii) the non-coronial post-mortem examination and any other post-mortem activities specified in the consent, | ||
(iii) a specific region of the body, or | ||
(iv) particular tissues and organs. | ||
(2) When seeking post-mortem consent for post-mortem activities to be carried out in accordance with section 47 , 48 , 49 or 50 a designated healthcare worker shall, in accordance with any guidelines, provide the following information to a relevant person: | ||
(a) information sufficient to enable the relevant person to understand what the proposed post-mortem activities shall entail before post-mortem consent is provided; | ||
(b) an indication of the parts of the body which are likely to be removed from the deceased adult, child or foetus; | ||
(c) the types of information available to enable the relevant person to make an informed decision regarding the proposed post-mortem activities; | ||
(d) confirmation of the relevant person’s entitlement to receive information on the proposed post-mortem activities either before or after he or she provides consent in relation to such activities; | ||
(e) any information that it would be reasonable, on the request of the relevant person, for the designated healthcare worker to provide to the relevant person in relation to post-mortem activities before or after such activities take place; | ||
(f) information on the options available to the relevant person in relation to the subsequent burial, cremation or return, in accordance with regulations under section 40 (2)(a), of any part of a body retained following the post-mortem activities; | ||
(g) an indication of the length of time a part of a body may, in accordance with regulations under section 40 (2)(a), be retained and what the subsequent use, if any, of such part of a body may be; | ||
(h) in the case of the proposed retention and use of any part of a body, including for the use by a third party, information relating to the types of use that this may entail; | ||
(i) in the case of the proposed retention and use of any organ or tissue, including for the use for commercial purposes, information relating to types of commercial use that this may entail and the effect of section 50 ; | ||
(j) confirmation that the post-mortem examination report shall be available to the relevant person at his or her request. | ||
(3) In this section, “relevant person” means— | ||
(a) in relation to a deceased adult in respect of whom it is proposed to carry out a non-coronial post-mortem examination— | ||
(i) the adult, the subject of the examination where he or she has, prior to his or her death, consented to a non-coronial post-mortem examination being carried out on his or her body, or | ||
(ii) the designated family member of the deceased adult where the deceased adult has not, prior to his or her death, consented to a non-coronial post-mortem examination being carried out on his or her body, | ||
(b) in relation to a deceased child in respect of whom it is proposed to carry out a non-coronial post-mortem examination, a parent or guardian of the deceased child, or | ||
(c) in relation to a foetus in respect of whom it is proposed to carry out a non-coronial post-mortem examination, the mother or a person acting on her behalf. |