The samples were taken from dead bodies during autopsies from 1966 to 1991, and were obtained and kept without the deceased’s families’ knowledge or consent.
A spokesperson said the university is “deeply sorry”.
History
In 2016, a curator from the R.A. Rodda Museum of Pathology at UTAS contacted the state Coroner’s office to discuss three bones in their collection.
They said the specimens appeared to have been kept after a post-mortem examination, without family or coroner approval. Further investigation revealed that between 1966 and 1991, 177 samples of human remains were kept by the museum following coronial autopsies.
Autopsies are conducted by forensic and hospital pathologists to identify the cause of a person’s death.
Findings
An investigation by Coroner Simon Cooper found it is likely that forensic pathologist Dr Royal Cummings, who has since died, provided the “large majority of coronial specimens to the museum.”
Cooper also found it “appears” those who worked in the role before and after Cummings also “engaged in the practice.”
Cooper said that although the Tasmanian Government was told in the 2000s that this may have been happening, no action was taken.
Process
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Under Tasmanian law at the time, coroners were required to release bodies or parts of bodies after examinations had finished.
This was almost always a process involving the deceased’s family. Cooper said coroners had “no jurisdiction… to authorise” keeping or removing any body part after an investigation.
He said it was “reasonable” for families to expect their loved ones’ bodies would be complete.
Findings
“The fact [that] parts had been retained without knowledge or approval would be [surprising] to many... members of the community,” Cooper said.
He added body parts from a post-mortem examination “cannot be used for medical research or education” without family consent.
Cooper said original coroners weren’t aware that the specimens were given to the museum.
Reaction
The coroner said the discovery has “been a source of pain and anger for many families,” and that the practice is “offensive to contemporary standards and values.”
University of Tasmania’s head of health Professor Graeme Zosky told TDA that the university is “deeply sorry for the sadness and hurt felt by family members”.
