NHS
University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire
NHS Trust
Bereavement Services
Information and advice for bereaved families and friends
Please accept the sympathy of the hospital staff on your recent bereavement HO S P I TA L O F ST C RO S S R U G BY
To avoid any unnecessary inconvenience to yourself, could you please telephone the Bereavement Services Department in Hospital Management on 01788 663214 or 01788 663176 at the hospital on the next working day.
What this booklet is for These notes are a reminder of the first formal steps you need to take. Some of the notes apply in every case, some may not be so important to you, or will only apply in certain cases. It can help to have everything written down, rather than trying to remember all the things you’ve been told. Before you leave the hospital, the staff will give you appropriate information regarding what you need to do next. Contact a Funeral Director – you do not have to wait until the Death Certificate has been issued.
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The Medical Certificate of Cause of Death There is now a new version of the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (MCCD) that requires countersignature by a medical examiner to ensure this process is being upheld. The Medical Cause of Death Certificate is a legal document and cannot be issued by any doctor – only by a doctor who knows the cause of death and was involved in the care of the deceased. Our Medical Examiners office will arrange for this to be issued to you as quickly as possible, but it is a complex legal process. Please bear this in mind when making funeral arrangements as the deceased cannot be released into the care of your appointed funeral director until this process has been completed. If the doctor is required to get approval of a cause of death from the Coroner, this can also cause a delay and in this scenario until the cause of death is approved by the Coroner, our bereavement services team will not have permission to issue the medical certificate.
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The Medical Examiner The Medical Examiner Service became statutory on 9th September 2024. It is now a legal requirement for all noncoronial deaths to be independently reviewed by a medical examiner prior to being registered. The Medical Examiner will liaise with the treating Doctor who will write the MCCD. The service will contact you in order to talk through the MCCD and answer any questions or concerns that you may have. Once the MCCD has been completed, the Medical Examiner’s office will send the certificate electronically to the Registrar’s office, and so you will not be required to attend the hospital to collect this certificate. You can contact the Medical Examiner’s office on the following numbers: 024 7696 5645 / 024 7696 7203 / 024 7696 4793 The service will do everything it can to accommodate all faith requirements, including operating an out-of-hours service at the weekends. The bereaved remain at the heart of the service and this new process should not cause any undue delays.
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Clothing and valuables Please be advised that we will endeavour to give the property to you before you leave the ward. Alternatively, please contact the ward to arrange collection.
Can I come and pay my last respects? Friends and relatives wishing to visit the mortuary to pay their last respects are advised that the hospital has limited facilities. You may find that going to the undertaker’s chapel of rest is preferable.
Is a post mortem required? Occasionally a doctor may ask for a hospital post mortem examination to be carried out in order to understand more clearly what happened, and to clarify the cause of death. If the doctor wishes to carry out a post mortem, they must ask for your permission and explain fully what you are being asked for, before asking you to sign a consent form. If this should be the case, someone will talk to you about it, usually before you leave the hospital.
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When the Coroner has to be involved The other instance when a post mortem may be required is if the Coroner has had to be involved, for example when the death has happened unexpectedly, or the cause of death is unknown. Their job is to discover, amongst other things, exactly what caused the death, and they have the power in law to order that a post mortem should be carried out. If this is the case, the Coroner or their Officer will get in touch with you directly. They will explain clearly to you what happens and why. If you need to contact the Coroner’s Office, telephone 01926 684228.
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Registering the death The Register office in Rugby will contact you to make a face to face appointment. You can request this to be at any of the register offices listed below. Nuneaton Stratford on Avon
Warwick Rugby
The Register Offices are open Monday to Friday 9.00am to 4.00pm The Registrar will ask you for the following details: • • • • • •
Date and place of death Full name and surname of deceased Maiden name (if appropriate) Date and place of birth Occupation If the deceased was married in a civil partnership or widowed, the name and occupation of their spouse • Usual address • Whether the deceased was in receipt of any pensions or allowances from public funds • If married or in a civil partnership, the date of birth of the surviving spouse.
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When registering a death at a register office in Warwickshire, the registration service is able to provide the ‘Tell Us Once Service’. This means that the register office will notify other local and central government organisations on your behalf, if you wish. The following documents are helpful but please do not worry if you cannot find them: • Medical card • Birth certificate • Marriage certificate The Registrar will then give you • A green form to take to the funeral directors Most people will require one or more copies of the formal registration of death in order to notify any banks, building societies, insurance, and pension funds, of the death. These can be requested at the time of the appointment or at a later date. If you request more copies at a later date, the cost will be the same as for the original registration.
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Stopping junk mail to the recently deceased If someone you know has died, the amount of unwanted marketing post being sent to them can be greatly reduced which helps to stop painful daily reminders. By registering with the free service www.stopmail.co.uk the names and addresses of the deceased are removed from mailing lists, stopping most advertising mail within six weeks. If you cannot access the internet you can call 0333 006 8114, where you will be asked for very simple information that will take only a few minutes to complete. Alternatively, ask the Bereavement Team for a leaflet that can be returned in the post. This free of charge service provided by the Bereavement Support Network will actively reduce the unwanted marketing mail but also can help reduce the likelihood of identity theft following the death of someone close. The information is not used for any other purpose and you only have to complete this once. Additionally, Stop Mail, a comparable service can also be accessed from the Bereavement Register or Deceased Preference Service if you would prefer to use them.
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Beginning the funeral arrangements Warwickshire County Council provide a ‘Bereavement Advice Service’ offering help with a variety of topics; what to do first, finding a funeral director, finding support, money and tax issues, probate and legal matters, preventing junk mail to the deceased. This service can be accessed by telephone: 0800 856 1437 or www.warwickshire.gov.uk If you have any worries at all about the cost of the funeral, please ask for advice before making arrangements. The Bereavement Services Department at the hospital, the hospital Social Worker, the Funeral Directors or your own Benefit Office will be able to advise you. If you are unsure about anything, or need someone to talk to please do not hesitate to ring the hospital on:
Rugby 01788 572831 and ask to speak to the site co-ordinator
Wills and estates, costs and expenses It is important to seek a solicitor’s advice over any question about a Will, or about the estate of the person who has died. It is also vital to make sure the Department of Social Security, together with any insurance companies, banks and building societies, know what has happened. The Registrar will give advice on notifying them, and can issue extra copies of the Registration of death for a small fee. 9
Request for entry into the Patient Book of Remembrance There is a Book of Remembrance held in the Elizabeth Chapel here at the Hospital of St Cross. Entries into the Book of Remembrance can be accepted for anyone who was a patient in the Hospital of St Cross. Please speak to the Bereavement Office on 01788 663214 or 01788 663176 if you would like to request an entry.
Further advice and support There are many people, in the hospital and outside, who can give careful advice and sensitive support, not only now but as time goes on. You may already have met the Hospital Chaplain or a Hospital Social Worker; and they will be able to meet you again, now or later, if there is anything you need, or something you are worried about. If you want to get in touch with them, or with someone else you have met here at the hospital, ring and ask for the Chaplain, the Social Worker, or the Ward Sister or Charge Nurse where the person who died was a patient. At each point over the next few days there will be people who are able to provide support and advice, including the Funeral Director, the person conducting the funeral, and your own family doctor, as well as the people mentioned in this booklet.
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Useful organisations Age UK Warwickshire 8 Clemens Street, Leamington Spa CV31 2DL Telephone: 02476 231 999 www.ageuk.org.uk/coventryandwarwickshire Carers UK (Formerly Carers National Association) 20 Great Dover Street, London SE1 4LX Telephone: 0808 808 7777 www.carersuk.org Cruse Bereavement Care (Coventry) For bereavement counselling Telephone: 024 766 70714 Cruse - Bereavement Care (National) PO Box 800, Richmond, Surrey TW9 1RG Telephone: 0808 808 1677 www.cruse.org.uk Young People’s Freephone National Helpline: 0808 808 1677 Compassionate Friends Hours: 10.00am - 4.00pm, 7.00pm - 10.00pm everyday Kilburn Grange, Priory Park Road, London NW6 7UJ Telephone: 0345 123 2304 (helpline) www.tcf.org.uk National Association of Victim Support Schemes Telephone: 0808 1689 111 www.victimsupport.org.uk
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National Probate & Inheritance Tax Helpline Telephone: 0300 123 1072 Samaritans Telephone: 116 123 www.samaritans.org Terrence Higgins Trust 437 & 439 Caledonian Road, London N7 9BG Telephone: 0808 802 1221 www.tht.org.uk Bereavement Support Network Telephone: 0333 240 0360 www.bereavementsupport.co.uk
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Notes ................................................................................................................................................................................ ................................................................................................................................................................................ ................................................................................................................................................................................ ................................................................................................................................................................................ ................................................................................................................................................................................ ................................................................................................................................................................................ ................................................................................................................................................................................ ................................................................................................................................................................................ ................................................................................................................................................................................ ................................................................................................................................................................................ ................................................................................................................................................................................ ................................................................................................................................................................................ ................................................................................................................................................................................ ................................................................................................................................................................................
The Trust has access to interpreting and translation services. If you need this information in another language or format please contact 024 7696 5835 or 01788 663174 and we will do our best to meet your needs. The Trust operates a smoke free policy. Document History Author Department Contact Tel Published Reviewed Review Version Reference No Printed
Donna Finnegan/ Pauline Barnett Bereavement Services (St Cross) 01788 663214 or 01788 663176 August 2011 October 2012, November 2013, November 2014, April 2015, April 2018, May 2022 May 2025 8 HIC/LFT/1264/11 November 2025
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The Hospital would like to thank RNS Publications for publishing this information and the following pages contain some features from services offering their help at this time. Whilst the Hospital is grateful of their support it does not endorse or recommend any of the services that they provide.
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