Spelling mistake among catalogue of errors before wrong body cremated at West Midlands MEP's funeral
A spelling mistake was among a catalogue of errors that led to the wrong body being cremated at Bushbury Crematorium at the funeral of West Midlands MEP Philip Bradbourn, a report found this afternoon.
Mr Bradbourn died, aged 63, on December 20 last year at Good Hope Hospital in Sutton Coldfield following a battle with cancer.
His funeral took place in January. However, the man who was cremated was Philip Bradburn, who had died at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham on December 24.
Staff at Good Hope Hospital's mortuary repeatedly failed to carry out accurate identity checks on the two bodies, the Heart of England NHS Trust said in a report.
Written records were either not completed, incomplete or inaccurately doctored, leading to confusion over two similar sounding surnames, it added.
Bosses at Heart of England NHS Trust have apologised for the error, which they have attributed to a 'complex and multifactorial' set of circumstances.
The report revealed a series of failings on the part of two funeral directors and Good Hope Hospital.
It says that as Good Hope's mortuary was nearing capacity, staff requested four bodies - including Mr Bradbourn's - to be moved to Central England Co-operative Funeralcare in Lichfield.
The names of those to be moved were given over the phone but not followed up with an email listing personal details including names and addresses, the report said.
The funeral home collected Mr Bradbourn's body but sent it back to Good Hope four days later after his family requested to change his burial to a cremation.
On the same day Mr Bradburn's body - which had been wrongly identified as Mr Bradbourn's - was sent back to the hospital over concerns it had been at the funeral directors for too long.
When it got to Good Hope from the funeral directors, the name 'Bradbourn' had been scrawled onto the accompanying paperwork, over-writing Mr Bradburn's name.
On examining the paperwork two doctors signed off the cremation for Mr Bradbourn - but the body of Mr Bradburn was released.
Dr Andrew Catto, of Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust, said a 'rare and complex set of circumstances' had led up to the blunder.
He said: "We are very sorry that this incredibly distressing situation has happened."
A spokesman for Central England Co-operative said: "Our priority has been to work closely with all concerned so that we can learn from this unfortunate incident and build further appropriate safeguards for the future."
A second funeral for Mr Bradbourn took place at Wolverhampton's St Peter's Collegiate Church, in February.
