Honoring our donors: A survey of memorial ceremonies in united states anatomy programs

Abstract

Many anatomy programs that incorporate dissection of donated human bodies hold memorial ceremonies of gratitude towards body donors. The content of these ceremonies may include learners' reflections on mortality, respect, altruism, and personal growth told through various humanities modalities. The task of planning is usually student- and faculty-led with participation from other health care students. Objective information on current memorial ceremonies for body donors in anatomy programs in the United States appears to be lacking. The number of programs in the United States that currently plan these memorial ceremonies and information on trends in programs undertaking such ceremonies remain unknown. Gross anatomy program directors throughout the United States were contacted and asked to respond to a voluntary questionnaire on memorial ceremonies held at their institution. The results (response rate 68.2%) indicated that a majority of human anatomy programs (95.5%) hold memorial ceremonies. These ceremonies are, for the most part, student-driven and nondenominational or secular in nature. Participants heavily rely upon speech, music, poetry, and written essays, with a small inclusion of other humanities modalities, such as dance or visual art, to explore a variety of themes during these ceremonies.

Attitudes of medical and allied medical students from Serbia toward whole body donation

“…Significantly, the majority of students surveyed in this study supported the idea of holding a memorial ceremony to honor the body donors. Such ceremonies are common in many institutions in a significant number of countries and belonging to various cultural circles (TSCHERNIG, PABST, 2001;TAYLOR, WILSON, 2007;PARK et al, 2011;JONES, LACHMAN, PAWLINA, 2014;ZHANG et al, 2014). They have been positively appraised and welcomed by anatomy students, academic staff and donors and their families (BOLT, 2012;ZHANG et al, 2014).…”

Human Anatomy: A Review of the Science, Ethics and Culture of a Discipline in Transition

“…This is not a rejection of the scientiic basis of anatomy, but an atempt to place it within a patient-centered health science context. One manifestation of this is in the emergence of commemorations and memorials in association with the donation of bodies for medical education [21][22][23][24].…”

“…The variety of terms used to convey the essence of these ceremonies include commemoration, thanksgiving, ceremony, service, and memorial ('memorial ceremonies' [23,27]; 'Convocation of Thanks' [22]; 'Thanksgiving Service' [28]; 'cremation/burial ceremony' [29]). In their diferent ways, each conveys the notion of remembrance, and of paying tribute to those who in their death have donated their bodies to a worthy cause, that of medical teaching and research [25].…”

A Eulogy for Our Anatomical Donors

“…Each year, medical schools across the United States provide a memorial service at the end of each school year. 1 Below is an excerpt from a student's address to families at an annual memorial service, and his perspective on the impact of these donors. It is a tribute to their contributions, exemplifying the importance and continued relevance of this learning tool in modern medical education.…”