Death cases – A thematic report on liaison in death cases with particular reference to organ retention

1 Source: General Register Office for Scotland

2 Source: Crown Office National Database

3 Approximately 400 files were reviewed at 21 offices during period January to November 2006

4 See Sharma and Grieve, Rapid Fixation of Brain; a Viable Alternative? Journal of Clinical Pathology 59:393-395, 2006

5 Source: Crown Office National Database

6 In the past the Fiscal would have told the doctor that the examination could take place with the consent of the relatives but the more modern term favoured by the Independent Review Group on the Retention of Organs at Post Mortem and used in the Human Tissue (Scotland) Act 2006 is authorisation.

7 Note that due to there being no field in the computer system to flag cases where organs were retained or donated we had to rely on staff remembering such cases and our own review of files, especially in larger offices where time did not permit a review of all death cases in the period concerned.

8 At this point there was some ambiguity of what 'retention' actually meant. Some felt that if the organ is used for further examination but returned to the body before release then it was still retention. For the purposes of this table such action has been recorded as retention.

9 Report of the Independent Review Group on the Retention of Organs at Post-Mortem, January 2001

10 Criminal Proceedings in Scottish Courts 2004/05, Scottish Executive National Statistics publication

11 References to 'convictions' should be taken to include all persons with a charge proved

12 1993 JC 228, 1993 SCCR 845 and 1993 SLT 182

13 2006 SCCR 605

14 Where main offence

15 Scottish Executive Justice Department court proceedings database