About Funerals

By: Funerals of Compassion

What to do when someone dies?

 

When someone dies at home?

• First call should be made to the treating doctor (or police depending on the circumstances).
• The doctor will issue a medical death certificate or the police will arrange transfer to the coroner.

 

When someone dies in hospital?

• The family is notified.
• A medical death certificate is issued by the attending doctor.
• For a cremation, the doctor will also issue a cremation permit.

 

When someone dies in a nursing home or private hospital?

• The family is notified.
• As nursing homes or private hospitals are not equipped with holding facilities they will arrange for a doctor to issue a death certificate so that transfer into our care can be arranged.

 

Working with your Funerals of Compassion Funeral Director

The next person to contact is your funeral director who will arrange the transfer of your recently departed. There is no need to have the transfer occur immediately. Discuss your preferred options with the funeral director. You may wish to call some family members and friends to support you and you may want to spend some time with your loved one before the transfer takes place.

 

Likewise, there is no rush to begin making the funeral arrangements. Coming to terms with the passing of a loved one is always difficult. We understand the importance of personal time to spend with your loved one without feeling rushed. We see our role as exercising all the assistance and compassion you may need to make sure that you are as comfortable as possible with managing the loss and to ensure we provide the right level of guidance through the planning, arranging and conducting the funeral.

 

Your need is our Commitment

As each individual is unique, so is each funeral. Our compassionate staff will advise you of all your options will a deep understanding and consideration to ensure the funeral is a personal and dignified parting of your loved one.

 

Arranging a Funeral

The initial face to face meeting with your funeral director is called an arrangement. The arrangement can take place at a convenient place either in your own home or at our office. The role of the funeral director is to assist in the practical aspects of the funeral and to liaise with all the relevant people on your behalf. The traditional role of a funeral director is to simply transfer the deceased and prepare the body. The ceremonial aspects were generally organised by the family and clergy.

 

Nowadays, the funeral director is able to manage and coordinate all aspects of the funeral for you. They plan when and where the ceremony will take place and assist in all the celebratory aspects which will reflect the life of the deceased.

 

Our role is to alleviate you of some emotional burden so you can spend as much time as possible dealing with your personal grief with your loved ones.

 

Planning for an Arrangement

Before the arrangement, there are a number of things you can prepare for the meeting:

• Clothing for your loved one
• Collect all personal details of your loved one for the completion of legal documents
• Choice of music to play during the service. Usually 2-3 items of music
• In the event that you require a Press Notice in a newspaper, it is advisable to make a list of all family members you want mentioned.

 

During the Arrangement

During the arrangement, our role is to understand your needs and guide you through the process of achieving the type of funeral you seek. In many cases the sense of loss is overwhelming and making decisions regarding funeral arrangements can be extremely difficult.

 

It is during the arrangement that our experience enables us to provide all the necessary compassion, reassurance, advice and guidance during that decision making process.

 

Typical decisions where we can provide guidance:

• Burial or Cremation?
• Church or Chapel?
• Viewing or No Viewing
• Service or No Service?
• Coffin or Casket?
• Clergy or Celebrant?
• Choice of Floral Tributes
• Choice of Music

 

The funeral director will document your choices in a funeral service which which you will need to authorise. You will then be given a copy along with an itemised estimate of all the expenses associated with the funeral. There are required legal documents to be completed such as the Registration of Death form for the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages and other documents depending on whether the service will be a burial or a cremation. Your Funerals of Compassion funeral director will prepare all the relevant paperwork and follow up after the arrangement.

 

After the Arrangement

After the initial arrangement, Your Funerals of Compassion funeral director will follow through on all the decisions made in the funeral service agreement. This is an intregal stage of the funeral process as our experience enables us to manage and coordinate all the elements of the funerals to ensure everything is as it should be with minimal fuss to you. This enables you to spend maximum time, where it should be: with family and with friends.

 

Our staff will stay in touch with you and keep you informed of the progress.

 

The Funeral Service

On the day of the funeral, you will meet your funeral conductor. Your funeral conductor will be responsible for coordinating all aspects of the funeral as planned during the arrangement. The conductor’s role is to ensure that all the arrangements are met and that everything runs smoothly.