Lost, Misidentified, Discarded: Fixing Mishandling in Death Care

Traci Arieli
May 29
2 min read

We all hope that when someone we love dies, their body will be treated with care, dignity, and respect. It’s a quiet, often unspoken expectation, that the system entrusted with their remains will not falter. But what happens when it does?

On a recent episode of Comforting Closure - Conversations with a Death Doula, I spoke with Nick Nell, co-founder of MorgueBoard, about something few of us think about until it’s too late: the mishandling of decedents in hospitals and care facilities.

The Unseen Vulnerability - Mishandling in Death Care

The phrase “mishandling of remains” or "mishandling in death care" sounds clinical. But what it means is heartbreaking: the wrong body cremated, remains misplaced, personal effects lost, or families left without answers.

Nick shared that these are not isolated incidents- they’re happening across the country. And at the root of many of these tragedies is a simple truth: our systems are not equipped to care for patients after they’ve died. Electronic health records, which support care through life, often go silent at the point of death. The handoff between life and death care is full of gaps, blind spots, and outdated tools- paper logs, spreadsheets, and phone calls.

Why It Happens

There’s no consistent standard for who’s responsible for a deceased patient. It might be the admissions office, the morgue, pastoral care, or the lab. Without clear accountability, things fall through the cracks- especially in high-volume hospitals where processes are manual and fragmented.

Even large hospitals, Nick revealed, often rely on handwritten check-in sheets or ad hoc spreadsheets. In an era where we can track a package to our doorstep, many institutions still can’t track where a person is after death.

The Cost of Systemic Failure

When something goes wrong, families experience confusion, anger, and deep grief. The opportunity to say goodbye properly, a crucial part of the healing process, is lost.

There are also religious and cultural implications. Many families have specific timelines or rituals around death that require careful attention.

And let’s not forget the professionals on the front lines. Many healthcare workers want to provide excellent care but lack the tools to do so. The system is failing them, too.

A Way Forward

Some hospitals are making progress by establishing Offices of Decedent Affairs and implementing technology like MorgueBoard, which provides real-time tracking, digital records, and improved communication between departments.

But families can and should ask questions. Who will care for my loved one’s body? Where will they be taken? Is there a specific person responsible? These conversations aren’t easy, but they’re necessary.

Because Dignity Doesn’t End at Death

We spend our lives advocating for our loved ones, asking about treatments, insisting on second opinions, showing up. That advocacy doesn’t stop when a heartbeat does.

We owe it to the people we’ve loved- and the people we will one day leave behind- to demand a better standard of death care. One rooted not just in systems, but in humanity.