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Aborted babies incinerated to heat UK hospitals
The remains of more than 15,000 babies were incinerated as ‘clinical waste’ by hospitals in Britain with some used in ‘waste to energy’ plants
By Sarah Knapton, Science Correspondent
7:00AM GMT 24 Mar 2014
The bodies of thousands of aborted and miscarried babies were incinerated as clinical waste, with some even used to heat hospitals, an investigation has found.
Ten NHS trusts have admitted burning foetal remains alongside other rubbish while two others used the bodies in ‘waste-to-energy’ plants which generate power for heat.
Last night the Department of Health issued an instant ban on the practice which health minister Dr Dan Poulter branded ‘totally unacceptable.’
At least 15,500 foetal remains were incinerated by 27 NHS trusts over the last two years alone, Channel 4’s Dispatches discovered.
The programme, which will air tonight, found that parents who lose children in early pregnancy were often treated without compassion and were not consulted about what they wanted to happen to the remains.
One of the country’s leading hospitals, Addenbrooke’s in Cambridge, incinerated 797 babies below 13 weeks gestation at their own ‘waste to energy’ plant. The mothers were told the remains had been ‘cremated.’
Another ‘waste to energy’ facility at Ipswich Hospital, operated by a private contractor, incinerated 1,101 foetal remains between 2011 and 2013.
They were brought in from another hospital before being burned, generating energy for the hospital site. Ipswich Hospital itself disposes of remains by cremation.
“This practice is totally unacceptable,” said Dr Poulter.
“While the vast majority of hospitals are acting in the appropriate way, that must be the case for all hospitals and the Human Tissue Authority has now been asked to ensure that it acts on this issue without delay.”
Sir Bruce Keogh, NHS Medical Director, has written to all NHS trusts to tell them the practice must stop.
The Chief Medical Officer, Dame Sally Davies, has also written to the Human Tissue Authority to ask them make sure that guidance is clear.
And the Care Quality Commission said it would investigate the programme’s findings.
Prof Sir Mike Richards, Chief Inspector of Hospitals, said: “I am disappointed trusts may not be informing or consulting women and their families.
“This breaches our standard on respecting and involving people who use services and I’m keen for Dispatches to share their evidence with us.
“We scrutinise information of concern and can inspect unannounced, if required.”
A total of one in seven pregnancies ends in a miscarriage, while NHS figures show there are around 4,000 stillbirths each year in the UK, or 11 each day.
Ipswich Hospital Trust said it was concerned to discover that foetal remains from another hospital had been incinerated on its site.
A spokeswoman said: “The Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust does not incinerate foetal remains.”
She added that the trust “takes great care over foetal remains”
A spokesman for the Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said that trained health professionals discuss the options with parents ‘both verbally and in writing.’
“The parents are given exactly the same choice on the disposal of foetal remains as for a stillborn child and their personal wishes are respected,” they added.
Channel 4 Dispatches, Amanda Holden: Exposing Hospital Heartache, airs tonight (Monday March 24) at 8pm
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Inappropriate handling of fetal remains: HTA letter to Chief Medical Officer
Following tonight’s Channel 4 Dispatches programme, the Human Tissue Authority has written to Chief Medical Officer, Professor Sally Davies.
http://www.hta.gov.uk/contentdisplay.cfm?widCall1=customWidgets.content_view_1&cit_id=1278
Issue date: 24 March 2014
Following reports of the inappropriate handing of fetal remains in hospitals in tonight’s Channel 4 Dispatches, HTA Chair, Baroness Diana Warwick has written to Professor Dame Sally Davies, Chief Medical Officer.
Our response states that:
- The Human Tissue Authority will revise our codes and guidelines to make it clear that incineration of fetal tissue is not permitted
- The Human Tissue Authority will examine appropriate policies when we inspect a licensed establishment and seek evidence that the policy is followed.
If you have any concerns arising from the programme, please do contact us for advice.
Letter to Chief Medical Officer, Sally Davies, from Baroness Diana Warwick:
Dear Professor Dame Davies,
Re: incineration practices
Thank you for your letter dated 21 March drawing our attention to concerns raised by Channel 4 Dispatches about the practice of incineration of fetal remains.
As Chair of the Human Tissue Authority (HTA), the watchdog for human tissue and organs, I was deeply concerned to hear these reports. We seek to make sure that hospitals disposing of fetal remains do so sensitively and respectfully, giving parents choice and putting their wishes first. If our guidance is not followed, it could make what is often a time of extreme distress for parents even harder.
I thought it would be helpful to set out what the HTA plans to do against your suggestions to ensure the best possible practice in the disposal of fetal remains:
1. revising its Code of Practice to ensure that guidance regarding fetal incineration is clear;
Establishments licensed for post mortem examination are expected to abide by our Codes of Practice on post mortem, disposal and consent. Whilst our disposal Code reflects the law and does not, at present, explicitly ban incineration, it does advise against it. The Code makes clear that burial and cremation are the most appropriate methods, and human tissue should not be incinerated with clinical waste.
We also make clear that parents should always be made aware of all options and given the opportunity to choose.
We will revise our Codes and guidance to make it clear that incineration as a method of disposal is not permitted for fetal tissue.
2. greater scrutiny of procedures for the disposal of fetal remains in HTA inspections of licensed establishments in the post-mortem sector;
We expect hospitals to have a clear and sensitive policy on disposal, which considers the needs of parents. HTA regulation managers examine these policies when they inspect a licensed establishment and seek evidence that the policy is followed. If we find that hospitals’ disposal policies and procedures do not guard against the incineration of fetal remains, we will take appropriate action to address this, if necessary with referral to other regulatory agencies.
3. making enquires about disposal methods in future compliance updates;
We regularly seek information from establishments (between inspections) relating to compliance with our standards – we will make sure that disposal of fetal remains is addressed explicitly in these updates.
4. working with others to improve guidance in this area, including DH, the Royal Colleges, Sands and Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management;
The HTA has been entrusted with the responsibility for raising standards in the post mortem sector. We have a very good reputation for working collaboratively to produce guidance for establishments. We will work with all of our partners, including those mentioned above, to improve guidance in this area as a matter of urgency.
5. working more closely with the CQC on how it may cover disposal of fetal remains on its inspections, including exploring how non-licensed establishments might report incidents relating to disposal of fetal remains.
As you note, there are non-HTA licensed establishments that may dispose of fetal remains, because they are not carrying out an activity that requires a licence. As a responsible regulator, we offer guidance to all hospitals on handling tissue and fetal remains, focussing on parental choice and appropriate methods of disposal. However, we cannot monitor or take action against non-HTA licensed hospitals if they fail to meet HTA standards or follow HTA guidance.
We already have a Memorandum of Understanding with the CQC. Where we do not regulate establishments that dispose of fetal remains, we will work closely with the CQC to make sure that our guidance is followed.
As you note in your letter, this is a complex ethical matter. The HTA was established to protect the public’s interest by ensuring that the removal, storage and use of human tissue and organs are undertaken safely and ethically, and with proper consent. This principle is central to the work of the HTA and our existence means that the public can be reassured that this will be upheld, and that the organisations undertaking these activities will do so to agreed standards.
We encourage anyone who is worried about the inappropriate handling of remains to contact us, the Care Quality Commission, or Department of Health.
We will look into any allegations we have received and investigate fully, referring to and working with other organisations as necessary.
I am copying this letter to the Permanent Secretary of the Department of Health, the Care Quality Commission, the Royal College of Nursing, Sands and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.
Yours sincerely,
Baroness Warwick
Chair, Human Tissue Authority
For more information, please contact the HTA press office on 020 7269 1912.
ABYSSUS ABYSSUM INVOCAT / DEEP CALLS TO DEEP 