Acton Funeral Home

Family emergency

Family Emergency

Nothing adequately prepares us for the initial shock of losing a loved one. Feelings of panic and helplessness may be overwhelming, but it's important to know you are not alone. It is important to reach out to close relatives, friends, and professionals for the help, support, and comfort you need. Notifying family and friends is always an important consideration in the initial tasks to be completed. Call immediate family members first, parents, children, brothers, sisters and grandparents of the deceased. Again, do not worry about waking others. Grief researchers say those close to the deceased feel left out if they aren't told about a death immediately. Rely on others to assist you in notifying everyone: do not attempt to do this yourself. It not only helps others through the grieving process to have some responsibility, but also allows you to carry on with other tasks. Although it may be difficult, telling others of a death it is therapeutic. Saying aloud that a loved one has died, the death is confirmed in your mind - an important step in the grief process.

So much is to be done in what seems like so little time. The emotional impact of death understandably makes it difficult to focus on the details that go into organizing a funeral. Also by clicking on the resource centre on the home page, you open a wealth of information and guidance to assist you through all of your needs.

1.	When death occurs at home, what should we do?

2.	If we are on vacation, and a death occurs what should we do?

3.	A death of a loved one has died at the hospital, where do we turn?

4.	A loved one has died in the nursing home, what should we do first?

Question #1	When death occurs at home, what should we do?
Answer:	If your loved one is at home in Massachusetts under hospice care, call the hospice agency who will send a registered nurse to pronounce the patient, notify the doctor, and complete the pronouncement form that allows for transport from home to the funeral home by the funeral home staff. The funeral home will arrange for a death certificate from the doctor who was notified of the death. If person dies at home in Massachusetts and is not under hospice care, even if he or she was receiving some kind of nursing care, the police should be notified. They will in turn dispatch an officer and contact the Chief Medical Examiner's Office who will then decide the level of investigation necessary to determine the cause of death. They will either allow the funeral home to transfer from home to the funeral home, or they will arrange to have the body transferred to the Medical Examiner's Office for examination and possible autopsy is required (at their cost). The Medical Examiner will use their staff or a funeral home of their choice for the transport. The family is under no obligation to use that particular funeral home for the services; rather once the person has been transferred and the examination completed you have the right to choose the funeral home you wish to carry out the deceased's final wishes. Your funeral home of choice will follow up with the Medical Examiner's Office to determine when the person will be released to the funeral home.

Question #2	If we are on vacation, and a death occurs what should we do?
Answer:	If a death was to occur away from the home, i.e. during a vacation or a business trip, then Acton Funeral Home suggests that you do a few things first. Call Acton Funeral Home. We will take care of making the necessary contact with a reputable firm in the area that the death occurred. We can act as your agent in that area, which will reduce costs. Contact your local police department and they will dispatch an officer to your location immediately so you will not be alone. If the death was sudden and unexplained, the local police authorities will make the necessary call to the local coroner to attend to the place of death. A county medical examiner or coroner may be called. If you have not called your funeral director, you will have to consider doing so as the person will have to be removed by them or an authorized agent. If a local funeral home is called by the authorities, you should still call our funeral home to act on your behalf with the local funeral director.

Question #3	A death of a loved one has died at the hospital, where do we turn?
Answer:	Whether or not you are present when the death occurs a health care professional will contact you and ask a few questions. Three of the questions you may be asked, you should be prepared for. 1. Which funeral service provider will you be releasing the body to, for transfer from the hospital? Please know that the local hospitals in our area do not notify the funeral home, even when this question is asked. You should call the funeral home directly. 2. Would you like an autopsy performed? Unless the deceased has died unexpectedly, you will have the choice. An autopsy is the thorough examination of the deceased body, to understand and determine the cause of death or any factors that may have contributed towards the cause of death. The information resulting from an autopsy can help researchers in developing cures and medications to assist in the preventions of such diseases. Autopsies are generally performed quickly, as to not interfere with the funeral process, however you may experience some short delays and should check with the health care professional as to when you can expect the autopsy to be completed if a delay could be of concern to you. 3. In Massachusetts, you will most likely also be asked if your loved one was an organ/tissue donor. If so, you may respect your loved one's wishes and allow for the organ/tissue donation, in which case the person is moved to the Organ Bank facility and released to the funeral home when the procedure is complete. If not, you may give permission or decline permission for the donation. If your loved one was a donor but you do not want the donation done, you may decline permission. In all cases, the family should make the call to their funeral home of choice. The hospital may ask which funeral home will assisting you, but they do not place the call for you.

Question #4	A loved one has died in the nursing home, what should we do first?
Answer:	When notified by the long term care facility, you will usually have the option of visiting your loved one before the transport to the funeral home. You should notify the funeral home of your choice and also provide the contact information to the nursing home staff. They usually will place a call to the funeral home of your choice.