Body Bequeathal Program FAQs

A typical funeral, including a casket, interment, headstone, burial plot, and associated services, can cost between $10,000 and $15,000.

In recognition of the gift of your body to help educate future doctors, dentists, physical therapists, and other health-care professionals, the department will, upon acceptance, arrange and cover all necessary arrangements.

Yes. The only limitation on expenses covered is if death occurs outside of the province. We can still accept your bequeathal; however, your estate or next of kin will be asked to assist with transportation costs. Alternatively, we can provide your next of kin with information about the closest medical college and its body bequeathal program.

Yes. You must be the age of majority to provide a bequeathal. Those under 18 cannot sign a legally valid bequeathal. However, in certain cases, such as imminent death, certain persons such as parents, siblings, or other next of kin of age of majority, can sign the required forms for a minor person. Older persons may donate their body as well. There are restrictions on all bodies accepted into the program based on health questions asked at the time of death.

No, it is not. There are several medical reasons that make it impossible for us to accept a bequeathal.  Since the condition at the time of death is of utmost importance, we cannot accept or decline until the time of death. 

We can accept:

• Arthritis
• Cardiovascular disease:
  • Angina
  • Atherosclerotic heart disease (ASHD)
  • Heart failure
  • Hypertension
  • Myocardial infarction (MI) "Heart Attack"
  • Cerebral vascular accident (CVA) "Stroke"
  • Unruptured aneurysm
  • Pacemakers
• Diabetes mellitus
• Ischemic bowel diseases
• Kidney: Renal failure
• Liver: Alcoholic hepatitis
  • Cirrhosis of the liver
• Lung: Chronic Obstructive Lung Disorder (COPD)
  • Emphysema
  • Pneumonia
  • Pulmonary Embolism
  • Pulmonary Fibrosis
• Most cancers or lymphomas

• Autopsy or Trauma
• Degenerative neurological diseases:
  • Jacob-Creutzfeldt
  • Rapid onset dementia
  • Multiple Sclerosis
  • Parkinsons
• Infections diseases:
  • Hepatitis
  • Septicemia ("blood poisoning")
  • Meningitis
  • HIV positive
  • Gangrene
  • Tuberculosis
  • C. difficile
  • Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)
• Ruptured aneurysm
• Recent major surgery (within six months prior to death)
• Extreme emaciation:
  • Males under 125 lbs (56 kg)
  • Females under 90 lbs (41kg)
• Excessive size: cannot be larger than 6'3" (196cm) and/or 190 lbs (85 kg)
• Operational Restrictions

If major organs are removed for transplantation, your body bequeathal will be declined. The only exception that will still be accepted is if only the cornea of the eye is removed for transplantation.

The College of Medicine, through the Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Pharmacology can provide you with the necessary legal forms. After you complete and return the forms to the Department, we will provide you with a donor card, which you can carry with your driver’s license or other identification. We will contact you periodically to update your file.

• Register with our program

Yes. Since we must receive your donation within 24 hours, it is imperative that you discuss your bequeathal decision with your next-of-kin and provide them with a copy of your completed form. If you have no next-of-kin, then please inform a friend. You should provide your physician and the executor of your estate or attorney with copies of your completed form.

Yes. If you verbally state to any person that you wish to donate your body, such as a hospital administrator or family member, that person may complete the form authorizing the donation for you. Regardless of who completes your form, there must be two witnesses 21 years of age or older one of whom is expected to be a survivor who must sign your form.

At the time of death, a nurse or the next of kin should contact the Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Pharmacology at 306-966-4075. The line is answered 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

A technician will return the call as soon as possible, typically within a few hours, to speak with the nurse or next of kin and ask a series of questions to determine whether the donation can be accepted.

If the donation cannot be accepted, the next of kin will need to proceed with the alternate arrangements previously identified by the donor. If the donation is accepted, the department will make all necessary arrangements. A statement of death will be provided within one business day so the next of kin can notify banks and other agencies.

Your body is respectfully cared for and used for educational purposes for a period of one to three years. Following this time, each donor is cremated individually.

Cremated remains may be returned to your next of kin upon request or interred at Woodlawn Cemetery in the University of Saskatchewan plot in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Your next of kin will be notified of the burial location or contacted to arrange the return of your remains.

Each donor is cremated separately, and remains are never combined with those of other donors.

If you choose to allow the Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Pharmacology to preserve a portion of your remains for longer-term educational use (such as plastination), that portion may not be cremated or interred with the remainder of your remains. This option is clearly indicated on the donation form, and your consent is required — we do not assume agreement.

Plastination is a method of preserving human tissue to allow it to be retained for long-term educational use. Developed in 1977, this technique replaces bodily fluids with a durable material, allowing anatomical structures to be studied in detail over many years.

In the Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Pharmacology, plastination helps extend the educational impact of each donation. By preserving specific structures for long-term teaching, more students are able to learn from each generous gift, further enhancing its value to medical education.

Yes. You may withdraw from the body bequeathal program at any time by submitting a written request to the College of Medicine at the address provided at the time of enrollment or listed on the Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Pharmacology website.

Donors are honoured at the University of Saskatchewan’s annual Memorial Ceremony, which is organized by the students who have benefited from the body bequeathal program.

Students deeply appreciate the generosity of donors and their families, whose gifts allow future health-care professionals to develop a unique understanding of the human body — its structure, form, and function. They recognize that, without this gift, their medical education would be incomplete.

The date, time, and location of the ceremony are shared with the next of kin so that family and friends may attend.

Every effort is made to ensure that electronic records are encrypted and stored on secure, firewalled servers. Access is restricted to a limited number of authorized personnel. Paper records are kept in locked storage and retained only for as long as necessary to complete required documentation, including vital statistics registration, burial and cremation permits, burial records, and notification of next of kin regarding arrangements and the memorial service.

The College of Medicine takes the protection of personal health information very seriously. All processes are regularly reviewed and monitored to ensure compliance and security.

Donors are encouraged to review the privacy statement carefully before signing the bequeathal form.

The Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Pharmacology does not issue death certificates or release information contained on a death certificate. In Saskatchewan, death certificates are issued through Vital Statistics at eHealth Saskatchewan, which has established policies and procedures for handling this information.

For information on ordering a death certificate, please visit the eHealth Saskatchewan Vital Statistics – Deaths page.

Toll-Free: 1-800-667-7551
Telephone: 306-787-3251
Fax: 306-787-8951
Email: vitalstatistics@ehealthsask.ca