Instructions to the Survivors of Body Donors
- As soon as possible after death, the body should be transferred to a funeral home of the family’s choice.
- The funeral home should be requested to embalm the body by means of arterial route only. Special embalming procedures will be carried out when the body reaches the Anatomical Board of the State of Florida in Gainesville.
- The director of the funeral home should be told of the wishes of the deceased to have his or her body made available for use in anatomical education and medical research. The funeral home director should also be told to notify the Anatomical Board of the State of Florida prior to transporting the body to Gainesville. For this purpose, the funeral home director should telephone the: Anatomical Board of the State of Florida, Telephone: (352) 392-3588
- The cost of the preliminary embalming and of transportation to Gainesville will be borne by the family or estate of the deceased. Charges for these services are determined by the individual funeral homes. The Anatomical Board has no jurisdiction in this matter. You may wish to discuss arrangements with more than one funeral director. Bodies delivered to the Anatomical Board should not be in a casket.
- The Anatomical Board cannot accept bodies of persons dying from
- crushing injuries
- extreme obesity
- or highly communicable diseases (such as AIDS or hepatitis B or C)
Autopsied bodies also cannot be accepted.
It is important for the family to recognize that the Anatomical Board cannot give any reports to them regarding the cause of death or any findings. If a family wishes to receive such information, they should have an autopsy performed by a qualified pathologist.
- After being used for education or research purposes, the body will ordinarily be cremated pursuant to Florida Statutes 497.005. The ashes are made available to the family or friends if requested in writing at the time the body is transported to the Anatomical Board. Medical education and research will take approximately two years to be completed. At that time, next of kin are notified of the availability of the cremains if there was a previous request for their return. If no request has been received, the Anatomical Board will take responsibility for final disposition of the cremains by spreading them over the waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
