What to do when a Death Occurs

Several things need to be considered when a death occurs. The order in which things need to be done usually depends on whether the death occurs at home, a public place, a nursing home, or in a hospital.

Today a large number of people choose to be at home with hospice assisting the family until the death occurs. Usually the family will notify the hospice nurse of the death and he or she will notify the proper people in the correct order. They will contact the physician, the Medical Examiner's office if necessary, and they will also call the funeral home. With Hospice, a simple phone call is the only notification that is needed.

If hospice is not involved, and the person passes away at home, the family needs to call 911. The police and possibly an ambulance will arrive at the residence and follow the local protocol. The police will have their normal investigation that they will need to follow before calling the funeral home.

If the death occurs in a hospital or nursing home, the name of the funeral home may be left with them, and the institution will notify the funeral home at the time of the death. The funeral home will respond and at the next practical time, review matters with the family and proceed. In Chicagoland, most nursing homes do have the facilities to hold a deceased beyond a few hours, so the funeral home will have to remove the deceased as quickly as possible. Most hospitals will require a signed death certificate before allowing the funeral home to remove the deceased from their morgue.

If in any case the death should occur and you are not sure of who to notify or what to do, you may call your funeral home and they will assist you in notifying the proper agencies.

There are several other questions that you may have in regards to the death of your loved one, such as, “do I have to have embalming?”, “do I need to purchase a casket?”, “what about cemetery arrangements?”, “does the family have a minister?”, “do we want cremation, visitation, ...?” By contacting Colonial Wojciechowski Funeral Homes, we will be able to help answer your questions and assist in making the appropriate plans. However, one of the best ways to make sure that all of your questions and desires are taken care of is to make pre-arrangements. This is as simple as outlining your wishes to having all of the details written down and the financial arrangements prepaid. Please contact one of our staff to learn more.