Bodies left decomposing in hospitals, reports find

Leeds General Infirmary was one of the hospitals where failings were identified

Hospital mortuaries allowed bodies of deceased patients to decompose because of a shortage of freezers, inspectors found.

The Human Tissue Authority inspected facilities at a number of NHS trusts in England - and highlighted concerns over practices in Leeds, Blackburn, London and Oxford.

A lack of frozen storage space led to corpses being kept at "unsuitable" temperatures - in one case for more than two months.

The hospitals criticised in the reports, following inspections in 2022 and 2023, said systems have since been improved, and two of the trusts have expanded their mortuaries.

Official guidance requires bodies to be moved into freezers after 30 days in refrigerated conditions, or before, depending on the condition of the body.

Yet a series of reports found NHS trusts were not always adhering to the rules.

In one incident at Leeds General Infirmary, reported in 2023, a body that had been released for burial by a coroner had not been placed into frozen storage after 70 days. It had begun to show signs of decomposition.

Another body remained in cold storage after 47 days without being moved into a freezer.

Inspectors also found there was no cleaning schedule for the body store at Leeds, and a door from the visiting area to the staff office was not fitted with a lock allowing "potential access to the main mortuary" by non-staff members.

At the Royal Blackburn Hospital in Lancashire in 2022, two bodies were discovered in an advanced state of decomposition by inspectors.

'Mouldy conditions'

Inspectors also visited King's College Hospital in London in 2022 and found "critical" shortfalls in mortuary services, including mouldy conditions.

Several adult bodies "had been stored in excess of 30 days in the fridge units"

"Whilst these bodies were subject to regular condition checking, signs of deterioration were present."

The long-term frozen storage unit was "at capacity", the report found.

Similarly, in 2022, a report into facilities at John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford identified inadequate storage provision and bodies showing signs of deterioration.

The issues were first investigated by the Health Service Journal, which stated inspectors found at least 10 cases in the past two years where bodies that had begun to decompose.

A spokeswoman for the Human Tissue Association said: "The management of the deceased in some licensed mortuaries was identified as a concern through the HTA on-site inspection process.

"The deceased should be stored at temperatures that preserve their condition and there should be sufficient storage provision and alternatives in place if needed.

"We expect all licensed establishments to be compliant with our standards and ensure the dignity of the deceased is maintained."

Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust said that the trust had improved communication with the coroner's service and other partners "to ensure this doesn't happen again".

Both King's College Hospital and Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust said mortuaries had been expanded, with Oxford citing "rising regional and national demand for mortuary facilities".