Post-mortem on Coroner8217;s Act

MUMBAI, May 5: The archaic clauses in the Coroner's Act of 1871, which does not even recognise the concept of brain stem death, have plac...

MUMBAI, May 5: The archaic clauses in the Coroner8217;s Act of 1871, which does not even recognise the concept of brain stem death, have placed major hurdles in the cadaver transplant programme. Hence, a non-governmental organisation has suggested two amendments to the 128-year-old legislation which would both encourage relatives of potential donors to offer organs as well as simplify procedures for recipients.

For one, the act should be amended to keep pace with technological advances and second, provisions should be made to allow post-mortems of donors to be conducted at the medical centre where the transplant is scheduled instead of the lone Coroner8217;s Court at JJ Hospital where post-mortems are allowed for this purpose.

Pointing to a glaring anomaly, Satnam Singh, executive director of the National Kidney Foundation of India NKFI says the Human Organ Transplantation Act of 1994 makes provisions for the transplant of organs from patients who are brain stem dead while the Coroner8217;s Act does not recognisethe phenomenon. This renders latest diagnostic tools like Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Computer Axial Tomography which are able to ascertain brain stem death due to neurological causes without the need for a post-mortem examination, as redundant under the circumstances. Since, the Coroner8217;s Act has no such provision, a cumbersome post-mortems is mandatory, he points out.

Singh, who told Express Newsline that amendments which incorporate technological diagnostic tools are imperative, says the NKFI has written to the state Department of Law and Judiciary urging the amendments.

One change that has been recommended is in Chapter 2aii, which should allow for a means other than a post-mortem to determine the cause of death.

If the coroner, who after doing an inquest is satisfied that the patient is brain stem dead, as well as the hospital committee agrees, the former should be allowed to authorise that the body be disposed of without a post-mortem, Singh points out.

He says Chapter 318i shouldbe amended to allow the coroner to conduct an autopsy, when mandatory, at the medical centre where the transplant surgery is to be performed. Thus, the donor8217;s body will not have to be sent to the Coroner8217;s Court for an autopsy and consequently ease hardships for the donor8217;s family. Singh says these issues were raised at a recent workshop in the presence of Maharashtra8217;s Minister of State for Law and Judiciary, Dilip Sopal, who promised to look into the matter.

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Sources in the department say though it is possible to incorporate the first suggestion, the second is unlikely to be accepted. For instance, since some deaths involve medico-legal consequences, like suicide or attempt to murder which can also lead to brain stem death, post mortem examination cannot be allowed at the same place as the transplant surgery.