ABSTRACT
This chapter is written from the perspective of the retained organs controversy, which was uncovered by the Bristol and Alder Hey inquiries and investigations.1,2
One of us (Michaela) suffered the double trauma of the death of a baby and retention of his heart, without her knowledge or consent. Michaela also chaired the Bristol Heart Action Group, which campaigned successfully for an inquiry at Bristol, and she was appointed as a member of the Retained Organs Commission. The other (Alastair) was appointed vice-chair of the commission. A year earlier, Alastair had suffered the loss of a daughter, who died of cancer at the age of 36. At his daughter’s request, an autopsy was performed. (She wanted to have the efficacy of the complementary therapy she had used tested.) Her organs were not retained after the autopsy. For the authors, as for most other members of the commission, the powerful emotions generated by this controversy were an unforgettable experience. Commission meetings were held in public, and on several occasions the anger and grief of affected families interrupted proceedings or brought them to a halt. Pathologists were described as ‘butchers’, comparisons were made with the holocaust, and the commission members themselves were accused of a cover-up and of complicity in professional wrongdoing.
