WORKING WITH DEAD BODIES: A day in the life of a mortician

For some seeing a person die is a scary experience let alone touching the corpse, however this is exactly the job of a mortician.

Some may call it a scary profession which is usually stigmatized and characterised by false beliefs, but, for morticians working with dead bodies is nothing scary just like working with books, pens or laptops and computers.

Morticians are on call 24/7 their work range from body removal, dressing, embalming to burial.

One mortician had this to say:

“When I started working as a mortician, I was a bit afraid and thought that maybe the spirits of the bodies I handle will follow to haunt me back home.

The mortician added that to make matters worse there has been beliefs that dead bodies do rise in anger during dressing demanding not to be handled by a person not their relatives.

“We grew up being told that corpses can rise while being worked on (dressed) and threaten to harm morticians, but I have since come to understand that nothing like that happens.

“Working with dead bodies is just as good as working with paperwork and computers,” says the morticians who declined to be named.

In short, a mortician is a person whose job is to deal with the bodies of people who have died and to arrange funerals.

A mortician prepares deceased people for wakes, funerals, and interment by embalming, dressing, cosmetically enhancing, and casketing them.

The mortician provides clients with counsel and comfort, and in some cases refer them to grief counselors.

They also assist with transporting the deceased to the parlour, hospital for postmoterm or even to the funeral home, and oversee their preparation for burial.

In some countries, mortician requirements include Associate’s degree, diploma in mortuary science or embalming and a valid state licensure as funeral director and embalmer.

Morticians are also expected to have proficient knowledge of various religions, cultures, and customs.

Apparenyly, the death of a loved one is both heartbreaking, disturbing and tragic for family members.

It is also becomes complicated in that surviving family members, despite the grief and heartbreak must have to coordinate the funeral services.

They have to make announcements, plan services, and ensure their loved one’s are put to rest in a dignified manner.

This is not easy task taking into account that the family is hampered by sadness and grief at the same time.

That is where a mortician or funeral director’s call comes in.

Zwnews