A hospital has come under investigation after a patient was allegedly transported to the morgue with his eyes still open.
The bizarre incident took place at Rockingham General Hospital in Perth, Western Australia, where a 55-year-old man in palliative care was stuffed in a body bag and taken to the morgue after nurses deemed him dead.
The case came under scrutiny as a doctor working at the hospital requested the coroner investigates the incident after being asked by hospital officials to backdate the patient’s death certificate.
As WA Business News reported, the nurses tending to the patient, who has since been identified as Kevin Reid, presumed he was dead on September 5, whereas his family was informed of the alleged passing.
The man was then transported to the morgue without a death certificate.
According to the doctor who requested an investigation, he wasn’t asked to backdate the patient’s death certificate until the next day when the patient was scheduled for organ donation.
When the doctor examined the patient’s body bag, they came upon chilling evidence suggesting that the man was still alive when he was taken to the morgue by the nurses.
“I believe the… blood from skin tear, arm position and eye signs were inconsistent with a person who was post-mortem on arrival at the morgue,” the doctor noted in a request for further investigation into the patient’s death.
As the doctor suggested, the patient’s limbs were in a different position than when he was placed in the body bag. Adding to the horror, the patient’s eyes were open and there were blood stains on his gown.
The doctor went on to explain that they refused to backdate the man’s death certificate after other staff reported that the patient’s eyes were closed when he was placed in a body bag and that his gown was free of blood stains.
“I also specifically asked about open disclosure and coronial discussions to which I was told the executive team would ensure this occurred if deemed necessary,” the doctor added.
While South Metropolitan Health Service, which manages Rockingham Hospital, has yet to comment on the accusations, the state coroner confirmed that an investigation into the patient’s death is underway.
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