Today I am due to fill in my first cremation form since the new
regulations came into force.
Reading the notes I made back in January, the official advice was
"'Old age' is acceptable for registration purposes where the deceased
is older than 80 years, but it is unlikely to be acceptable for
cremation purposes and medical referees may make further enquiries.
The cause of death must be ascertained."
Fortunately in my patient's case the cause of death is known, but I
wondered what my colleagues are doing when an elderly (over 80)
patient just fades away and dies with no obvious cause of death. Do
you think of something plausible, or refer to the coroner?
Mike
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Michael Leuty
Nottingham, UK
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