Human anatomy education and management of anatomic specimens during and after COVID-19 pandemic: Ethical, legal and biosafety aspects

Abstract

COVID-19 is an infection caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, initially identified in the city of Wuhan, China, in December 2019. Since then, the virus has spread to the continents, causing a major pandemic. The impacts of this pandemic on the education of human anatomy interfere in at least two aspects: (1) receiving and managing anatomical specimens in anatomy laboratories and (2) adaptations for classes on remote virtual teaching. Therefore, this study reviewed and discussed the legal and bioethical aspects, considering the scenario of a South American Country, aiming to stimulate the debate on these two relevant themes in the international community. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic and the impossibility of mass testing, anatomists and other workers in the field must deal with the risk of receiving bodies infected with SARS-CoV-2. In this situation, additional care measures in biosafety practices are essential to protect the staff. Such measures are: the bodies must be preserved by the perfusion of formaldehyde or other fixative solutions; embalming must be performed in ventilated rooms with a good air exhaust system; to avoid excessive manipulation of bodies and procedures such as pulmonary insufflation or craniotomy; and proper use of personal protective equipment, including lab coat, gloves and masks. As for exposure of body images in online classes, this review showed that there are no legal impediments to this end. However, anatomists must adopt measures aimed at protecting the memory of the deceased, such as using secure digital platforms with restricted access; family authorization/consent and student awareness.

Initial effects of Covid-19 pandemic on graduate anatomy education in Turkey

“…[2,28,35,39,40] Although manipulation of dead bodies might pose a risk of contamination, [41,42] the International Federation of Associations of Anatomists and some countries recommended that embalming could be performed with proper personal protective equipment and workplace decontamination. [25,[42][43][44] Recent reports indicate that body donation programs have been started to accept bodies, though, with a relatively decreased number of bodies compared to previous years. [27,39] The reopening of donation programs had resulted in limited face to face dissection sessions at some medical schools in the UK.…”

Educating Future Doctors in Covid‐19 Times: Anatomists Lead the Way!

“…Although the death toll per capita was relatively low, the infection rate was exceedingly high, causing the government to declare several mandatory nationwide lockdowns (Israeli Ministry of Health, 2021), which included the cessation of all face-to-face academic activities. The impact of this decision was predominantly felt in pre-clinical human anatomy courses (Brassett et al, 2020;Harmon et al, 2021;Lemos et al, 2021;Yoo et al, 2021). A key component in early medical education, anatomy is considered one of the most challenging and resource-demanding courses for students, lecturers, and institutions.…”

Body Donation, Teaching, and Research in Dissection Rooms in Spain in Times of Covid‐19

“…This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved also the case for the tried-and-true cadaver embalming methods cited in most reports (Balta et al, 2015;Vázquez-Osorio, 2020;Ravi, 2020;Lemos et al, 2021;Onigbinde et al, 2021). Consequently, the risk in carrying out academic activities directed by experienced academicians working with samples submitted to the usual disinfection, embalming and personal safety procedures employed in the respondent's dissection rooms is limited (Vazquez-Osorio, 2020).…”