A hospital in Australia is under investigation after nurses allegedly sent a man to the morgue in a body bag while still alive.
Kevin Reid, a palliative care patient, supposedly died in Rockingham General Hospital on 5 September. But a doctor’s discovery suggests the patient could have actually died on 6 September – despite having already been sent to the morgue.
The realisation that a grave error was made struck when the doctor unzipped the body bag and found fresh blood on the patient’s gown and saw his eyes were open, according to reports.
On 5 September, nurses believed Mr Reid, 55, died and sent him to the morgue after informing his family. A doctor had not attended to certify the patient’s death before he was sent to the morgue, which the hospital attributed to staff shortages.
The hospital also said there had been confusion because two patients had died in a very short space of time.
The following day, a doctor went to certify Mr Reid’s death after an organ donation organisation requested permission to take his organs.
As well as the doctor spotting fresh blood and the patient’s eyes open, two of the corpse’s limbs had reportedly moved, raising the alarm Mr Reid may have been alive when he was transferred to the body bag.
Read more: Man sent to morgue ‘still alive’ after doctor opens body bag ‘to find his eyes open’