What will be the date of death?

MadeinYorkshire

Probably when discovered by staff. My DH died in a Hospice. I was with him and new he was gone. I noted the time. I stayed in the room with him about 25 mins before informing staff. I was asked if I had noticed the actual time of death and what I said was taken for death certification.

maddyone

My mother died shortly after midnight in her care home and was found by a carer at about 12.15. That was taken as her date of death but it’s possible that she died the day before, just before midnight. I only feel guilty that I wasn’t with her. I should have stayed, but thought she was sleeping and decided to return the next morning. In fact she was moving towards her death.

I'm sorry *maddyone, but I think that you will often find that people wait until their loved ones have gone - my dad did ... 30 years ago. Mum had been with him all night and the ward sister told her to go home and have a wash, change, something to eat etc as it wasn't expected imminently - she did and he chose to die whilst she was away. He also didn't wait for me, and promised me he would be hanging on until my baby was born. I was travelling down from Scotland to Yorkshire to be with him, 7 1/2 months pregnant, just before Christmas ... he died before we had set off and whilst I was at an ante-natal appointment. Weird but I was very cross with him!

That baby, died in November, aged 29 we found her on 24th November, and do want to know if it was that date or the day before that she died really. We may never know and it will depend on whether the PM showed anything up. We are still awaiting the Inquest, but her date of death has been recorded as the day we found her.

In regard to someone on another continent, maybe the difference in time has not been taken into account? If you hear of it on 3rd of month for example maybe because of time zones in another country or continent, death could have occurred on either 2nd of 4th? Just a thought.

HurdyGurdy, is your DH worried at any possible financial implications of the death being in one tax year or the other?

My DH died at home with just me present just after midnight . I was asked when he died, and this date and time was put on the certificate even though the doctor didn’t come until 4am .
Many years ago when I was a nurse in hospital we were not allowed to certify even an expected death so the time and sometimes the even date was after the actual death . If the relatives were present I remember they were confused by this .

My Dad died in hospital with all family around him at approx 11.30pm on a Saturday.
His death was certified 2 hours later,thus being next day, Sunday.
I found it upsetting that this wrong date was used, particularly on the plate of his coffin and for memorials.

My father died in a care home, and the time of death was recorded as the time stated by the nurse who was sitting in his room as 8 a.m.

This is the time on the death certificate signed by the attending physician later the same forenoon.

I imagine the same thing will happen with your MIL.

As you say, it has little significance apart from the relevant fact that it is worrying your husband right now, so I hope consensus here can set his mind at rest.

My condolences to you both. Losing our mothers is hard - they are after all the person who knew us longest.

My thoughts are with you and your family.
Sadly my Dad found my brother dead in his flat last year, the paramedics said that he would have been dead 3 or 4 days. However on his death certificate it states that he died on the day my Dad found him. I really hate not knowing the exact date as I always light a candle on any anniversaries for family members passing. x

The exact date of death can be extremely important.
I'm sure there are many of us who remember when Alf Roberts (Audrey's husband) on Coronation Street passed away late at night and because the doctor didn't come until after midnight, his life insurance had expired, and Audrey missed out on the payment.
Granted, that was down to Alf not having renewed the insurance, but the doctor couldn't say whether he'd passed before midnight or not, and it's amazing how often things like this happen.

Sorry for your loss, definitely the 4th 🌷

I remember attending the sudden but peaceful death of a 99 yr old lady who died at 10pm on the night before her 100th birthday. Her family were so upset that she didn’t make her 100th. I think the doctor put 10pm even though he attended after midnight.

I was with my mother when she died in hospital. I sat with her for some time before I told the nurse in charge and the doctor arrived some hours later. The time recorded was the time I gave them. I did have a bit of advantage that I had been a very senior nurse at one time so they all seemed a little afraid/ in awe of me

Sound like lack of empathy. It really doesn't matter to a doctor when exactly the person died, they are still dead, but from this we can see that it does matter to relatives. I think though that too much is being read into the "certification" here. The actual time of death is a fact which cannot be altered, the certification is merely a confirmation that the person is indeed dead, which, as we can see can be confirmed some time later. This doesn't alter the time of death (it is just the record of someone having died), so the date on the certificate is just the time at which "The Certificate" was issued - which, like any legal document is dated. (ie, not the actual time of death, unless, of course,the certifier was actually present!) I can't remember what it says on a death Certificate but maybe it needs to be altered to "Date of Death Certification" rather than "Date of death". (... and if a crime writer like Agatha Christie gets a good story out of it, I will certainly enjoy reading it, though I suspect that if there was any reason to have to know the exact time, it would be for the Courts to decide, based on a "balance of probabilities", not for relatives and not the certifier!

My partner died in a care home in 2019. There was an expectation of death and he was on comfort meds. When the district nurse arrived 30 mins after we called her she asked me what time he died at. She put that time in the paperwork.

So sorry for your loss.

The time on the certificate is when the person is pronounced dead, rather than when they actually passed.
I was actually surprised when the time on my husband’s was his time of death and not when the dr came an hour later.

In any case I’m not sure why it makes any difference?

Happened to my mother. She clearly died on the Saturday pm but DoB was when paramedics came on Sunday morning

10th January not 19th!

My condolences to you and your DH. Totally agree it does matter.
My DB passed away unexpectedly in January in Florida and I know he passed on the 9th January as when we received the phone call from our niece my husband remarked that he will never enjoy a birthday again knowing my brother died on his birthday. On his death certificate it’s been put down as 19th January and it’s really annoyed and upset me, even though I don’t know why. I questioned my niece but she’s only young and has been struggling with everything on her own and said she was sure it was the 10th January but she was so upset that I just think those days have become a blur to her. Maybe have a word with the Matron of the care home or phone the Doctor who writes the death certificate?

dustyangel, I will think of you and your son, when I think of my son on the anniversary x

Thank you everyone, for your commiserations and for sharing your own sad thoughts. I started to write especially so and so but realised I couldn’t single any one of you out, you are all so special.

pandapatch Thank you, that is what I have done too.

My mother died shortly after midnight in her care home and was found by a carer at about 12.15. That was taken as her date of death but it’s possible that she died the day before, just before midnight. I only feel guilty that I wasn’t with her. I should have stayed, but thought she was sleeping and decided to return the next morning. In fact she was moving towards her death.

Strange to read this. My son in law was with my husband when he passed away at about 8.10 in the evening. We couldn’t ask the funeral director to come (although they were aware, it was expected) until someone had certified his death. That happened at around 1.30am although the nurse was happy to certify 8.10 as it had been phoned in at that time. It matters. My heart goes out to anyone who has this lack of clarity hanging over them.

My elderly relative dies on Sunday evening (2nd April) at around 7pm according to someone I spoke to on the ward at approximately 8pm. Death was not certified till 0.31hrs the next morning, so 3rd April is what's on the death certificate.

Looks like medical people don't think it's of particular importance, doesn't it?

HurdyGurdy Sorry to hear about your SIL. We had a the same issue with my SIL's dear Mum. She was last seen by a carer at 20:00 by a carer and was found by another carer at 08:10 the next morning, She had been dead many hours but no idea about wether she died in the evening or early hours of the morning. The official date is the morning but my poor SIL has no idea which day her mum died.