Interview: Palliative medicine is about life, but it also introduces medical students to dying
Interview with Associate Professor Jan Maláska about the expansion and importance of teaching palliative care.
Act of Rememberance commemorates the memory of generous body donors
A memorial service will be held in the ceremonial hall of the Central Cemetery in Brno on 2 November at 5 pm for people who agreed to use their bodies after death for the purpose of teaching future doctors. A new collection for a memorial to these donors has begun.
Practical anatomy teaching, in which medics learn about the structure and arrangement of the organ systems of the human body, cannot do without anatomical specimens from donors who consent to the posthumous use of the body for scientific and educational purposes, despite advanced technical possibilities. Since 2018, the Institute of Anatomy and the Society of Medics of the Faculty of Medicine of Masaryk University have organized a November memorial service for these donors.
"This is an opportunity for students and the general public to realize the magnitude of this donation, which makes a fundamental contribution to the teaching of future doctors. It should be constantly explained that these are not just anonymous slides, but specific people with unique life stories," says Marek Joukal, head of the Anatomy Institute. He adds that this event demonstrates the respect with which the university treats donated bodies.
For these reasons, a plan to build a permanent memorial for donors at the Central Cemetery in Brno was also conceived. "At the moment we have a project for the memorial, including its visualisation, and we are dealing with the necessary administration," says Alžběta Novotná, president of the Medics' Association. The modifications to the existing grave site should take place next year. The necessary funds are coming from donors to a transparent account, from visitors to various fundraising events and a new collection on the Donio platform. Supporters of the university hockey team HC MUNI will also be able to support the cause: during the game against the Czech Budweis Black Dogs on 29 November, the entire project will be presented to the spectators in cooperation with the Faculty of Medicine, and the proceeds from the entrance fee will also go towards the construction of the memorial.
"I think public awareness of body donation is gradually increasing. However, there is still a lot of catching up to do and explaining the issue, also to attract new donors," says Marek Joukal. In the Anatomical Institute itself, a sculpture by Jaromír Gargulák called Pieta has been hanging since 2007 to honour body donors. The artwork is dominated by the Latin inscription Hic mortui docent vivos (Here the dead teach the living).
The body can be donated for practical teaching on the basis of a completed and certified consent form and a signed contract with the Anatomical Institute, which will assume all costs associated with the transportation of the body and cremation of the remains after the death of the donor. For technical reasons, the Institute only concludes contracts with donors with a place of residence within 150 kilometres of Brno.
