At Home
If someone has passed away at home from what you believe to be natural causes the first thing you must do is to call their usual doctor to attend.
When the doctor is satisfied the person died from natural causes he will complete either a Life Extinct certificate or a Cause of Death certificate.
When the doctor has completed the documentation and when the family feels the time is right, call Dignified Cremations on 1800 11 33 55 and we will arrange to transfer the deceased from your home and into our care.
If the deceased has already prearranged their cremation with Dignified Cremations it is best to tell us at this time, if not we will then ask you for some details about yourself and the deceased. We will then explain to you how the rest of the arrangement process works.
In a Nursing Home or Private Hospital
When a death occurs at a Nursing Home, the home will contact the family first to notify them of the death and then, at a time which is suitable to both the family and Nursing Home they will call Dignified Cremations to arrange the transfer of the deceased into their care.
Dignified Cremations will contact the family the next day to gather details about yourself and the deceased and will explain to you how the rest of the arrangement process works. If the deceased had previously prearranged their cremation it would be best if you had the paperwork when we contacted you.
If the nursing home is unable to make contact with the family.
In most cases when a person enters a nursing home for the first time, the home will request from you the name of a preferred funeral director to place in the residents file. Sometimes when death occurs the relatives are not always contactable (e.g. Away on Holidays) in these cases the nursing home can ring the nominated funeral director to come and take the deceased into their care while the nursing home awaits contact from the relatives.
In a Public Hospital
When a person dies in a Public Hospital, the hospital administration will arrange for the completion of all legal formalities, such as the Cause of Death Certificate, When the family feels the time is right, call Dignified Cremations on 1800 11 33 55 and we will arrange to transfer the deceased into our care once all paperwork has been completed at the hospital.