A copy of the post-mortem report will be sent to the deceased's GP by the hospital or the coroner's office. A relative or partner of the deceased can arrange to discuss the findings of the post-mortem with the doctor who was in charge of the deceased person's care in hospital.
If a post-mortem has been ordered by the coroner, the report may be more limited. This is because the purpose of the post-mortem is to identify the cause of death, rather than to make a more detailed assessment.
Copies of the report can be obtained from the coroner's office, although there is usually a fee for this.
Death of a baby
In the case of the death of an unborn or newborn baby, the parents should be offered a follow-up appointment with their consultant obstetrician (expert in pregnancy) to understand the events leading up to their baby's death.
Every effort will be made to hold the follow-up appointment around six to eight weeks after the parents have left the hospital. However, the waiting time can often be longer than this and it may take up to 10-12 weeks in many cases.
The results of the post-mortem should be available at that appointment.
