MULLINGAR REGIONAL Hospital has issued an apology to a family of a deceased patient who were given the wrong remains by the Westmeath healthcare facility.
According to the Irish Mail on Sunday, a mortician noticed the error last Friday, April 24th, after coming across a bag bearing the name of the patient in question despite the fact their remains had already been signed out.
The report alleges the family of the deceased were informed of the mistake just “minutes” before the funeral service was due to begin.
As a result, the hearse carrying the body was immediately redirected back to the hospital, so the two sets of remains could be switched around.
Mullingar Regional Hospital has confirmed that the “incorrect remains” were passed on to an undertaker before the mistake was rectified.
A full internal review into the incident is set to be conducted by Ireland East Hospital Group and Regional Hospital Mullingar.
The Serious Incident Management Team has also been convened to address the issue.
In a statement, Ireland East Hospital Group said "We would like to offer our condolences to the families and sincerely apologise for the distress this has caused during this difficult time."
"Processes and protocols have been reviewed within the hospital and its mortuary in order to mitigate this extremely rare event from happening again. "
Because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, any individuals dying from the virus must be placed in a sealed body bag by a mortician.
This bag is then transferred to an undertaker before the funeral.
Under the current restrictions, just 10 close friends and family members are allowed to attend the service.
They are also prohibited from seeing the body of the departed.
