What happens when someone dies in a hospital or nursing home?
When they register your loved one upon admittance to the hospital, the hospital registration department will go through a series of questions, of which they will inquire as to the funeral home of your preference. Obviously, we hope for the best when our loved one is admitted, but unfortunately complications arise and difficult times are ahead for your family. When death occurs, the nurse will notify your loved ones physician. If their attending physician is unavailable, they will notify the on call physician. In the State of Wisconsin, a licensed registered nurse can also make pronouncement of death, if the attending physician or the on-call physician is not immediately available. Upon completion of a series of tests for death, the nurse or doctor will mark/note the time of death. Therefore, in some cases the time of death that is listed is not the actual time of death, but when pronouncement was made. The nursing staff will then notify the family member(s) they have on file. In some c
