Authorities here have bemoaned the rising number of
uncollected bodies at mortuaries, which already have a limited carrying
capacity.
The situation has also been worsened by the shortage of
mortuary facilities at most Government hospitals in the province, where some of
the refrigeration systems have broken down.
Chegutu District Hospital, which had the highest number of
uncollected bodies, together with Chinhoyi Provincial Hospital, recently
conducted paupers’ burials for 12 uncollected bodies.
In an interview, provincial health services administrator
Mr Godwin Tauya said paupers’ burials are conducted when bodies have spent up
to 21 days in the mortuary.
The Ministry of Health and Child Care also conduct the
paupers’ burials in consultation with the Department of Social Welfare.
“There are 19 bodies that are awaiting paupers’ burial
after those 12 at Chegutu Hospital were buried on April 17,” said Dr Tauya.
“The unclaimed bodies will be due for burial if they exceed 21 days without
anybody coming to claim them or identify them.
“Police have to find relatives first before they process
papers for burials. Approval of burial is granted by Social Welfare which does
the paperwork and also contracts people who will do the burials with help of
mortuary attendees.”
Mr Tauya said Chinhoyi has a number of unclaimed bodies and
most are infants. “Chinhoyi has a number of unclaimed bodies, most of them of
small children,” he said. “The main causes are stillbirths where mothers do not
come back to claim their babies for burial.
“Also those babies which would have been taken for burial
will be brought back after being picked up at Hunyani River where they will
have been dumped.”
Dr Tauya bemoaned the limited carrying capacities of
mortuaries across the province.
“These are Karoi with carrying capacity of nine bodies,
Banket which has two facilities and Kadoma which also has two mortuaries,” he
said.
“Chinhoyi carries 24 bodies and has 12 unclaimed bodies,
while Kutama carries 12 bodies, Kariba (three) while Chegutu has two units of
which one is not functioning and has a carrying capacity of six bodies.”
The state of mortuaries across the country has raised a lot
concern, with most of them having broken down while efforts to repair them have
been affected by foreign currency shortages. Herald
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