Information about Body Donation to the Bioscience Division for Anatomical Study
Please ensure you always discuss alternative funeral arrangements with your family and estate trustee in case Humber College is unable to accept the remains.
Anyone may donate their body. There is no age restriction for the body donation program. However, in some cases the cause of death or limitations of equipment and space may limit our ability to receive a donation. The suitability for acceptance will be determined as soon as possible at the time of death.
Your donation makes an incredible impact to the learning of students from a broad spectrum of programs within the Faculty of Health Sciences and Wellness. Programs include:
- Biomedical Sciences, Bachelor of Science
- Early Childhood Studies, Bachelor of Applied Science
- Exercise Science and Lifestyle Management, Graduate Certificate
- Fitness and Health Promotion, Diploma
- Massage Therapy, Advanced Diploma
- Nursing, Bachelor of Science, Diploma and Accelerated programs
- Occupational Therapist Assistant & Physiotherapist Assistant, Diploma
- Paramedic, Diploma
- Pre-Service Firefighter Education and Training, Certificate
- Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioner, Advanced Diploma
- Workplace Health and Wellness, Bachelor of Health Sciences
The executor/trustee named in your will has the ultimate authority to consent to your body donation. In the event that you leave no will, your legal next of kin has the authority to bequeath your body. Part I of the Donation of Body form is completed by you prior to death or Part II is completed by your executor/trustee/next-of-kin after death. It is important that you discuss your wishes with your family as a signed donation form is only an indication of a potential donor's wishes, which can be prevented by the estate executor/trustee after death. You may also change your mind at any time, so it is important that your current wishes are known to your family.
Organ and tissue donation are a significant way to contribute to society. If a person wishes to donate their body to a School of Anatomy after their death, only the eyes can be donated as a tissue gift for transplant at that time. If someone has donated an organ or tissues during their lifetime (i.e. liver, kidney, bone marrow) this does not exclude them from donating their body to a School of Anatomy.
Organ donation is coordinated by Ontario Health's Trillium Gift of Life Network. Further information regarding organ donation can be obtained from Trillium Gift of Life Network.
483 Bay Street, South Tower, 4th Floor, Toronto, ON M5G 2C9
416.363.4001 or Toll-Free 1.877.363.8456
Anatomical study and/or research in the Bioscience Division can range from months to years after receiving a body. The average timespan for retaining a donor is 18 months to 3 years. In certain cases, entire bodies or portions of a body may be kept indefinitely.
The remains of each donor are kept separate and identifiable and cremated. These remains can be retrieved by the next-of-kin or interred in the Humber College plot located at Elgin Mills Cemetery in Richmond Hill, Ontario. All expenses for cremation and interment in the Humber College plot are paid for by the Faculty of Health Sciences & Wellness.
Upon a potential donor’s death, a physician or coroner must issue a Medical Proof of Death Certificate. The estate executor/trustee should call McKinnon and Bowes Ltd. 416.465.7508, or 1.800.268.6736. If the body of the donor is accepted, McKinnon and Bowes Ltd. will make the necessary arrangements to transport the body from the place of death. Costs associated with transportation, registration of death in Ontario, and all documentation required by the family will be billed to the estate of the donor.
To register the death the estate executor/trustee should be prepared to provide the donor’s SIN card (or a past tax assessment), proof of birth (or passport or baptismal certificate), and the full names and birth places for both of the donor’s parents. (The parent’s information is required for the Deputy Registrar General, any questions about this information can be directed to the Registrar directly at 1.800.461.2156).
The estate of the deceased will be responsible for payment of the cost of transportation, registration of the death in Ontario, and all documentation required by the family.
To assist the family, a funeral home service appointed by the College will be responsible for the transfer of the deceased from the place of death, for the municipal registration of death on behalf of the family, and for the preparation of the proof of death certificates and any other documentation required by the family. Humber College will take into consideration any preference the family may have for a specific funeral home to be responsible for the above.
Humber College will assume all costs thereafter related to the immediate embalmment, maintenance, cremation, and interment of each of the cremated remains within the Humber College plot at Elgin Mills Cemetery. Alternatively, the family may request retrieval of the remains for private interment at the cost of the estate.
Respect and dignity for all donors guides every step of the process within the Bioscience Division. Included in this is maintaining the strictest confidentiality and privacy for all donors. Students and researchers only receive the age, sex and cause of death for the donors they will be studying.
McKinnon and Bowes Ltd. and its representatives, or a specific funeral home of your preference, will gather the required documentation for death registration and body bequeathal. They also will transfer the body from the place of death to Humber College. Some families find it helpful to hold a personal memorial service for their loved one, in addition to attending the annual memorial service held by the College. A funeral director from the funeral home of your choice can help you make arrangements for such a service.
To donate body remains to the Bioscience Division for Anatomical Study
in the Faculty of Health Sciences and Wellness at Humber College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning (ITAL)
Please complete the Bequeathal Form, including the required document under The Anatomy Act - Province of Ontario
While much of the form may be filled out electronically, original signatures are required so the form must be printed before signatures are applied.
PART I: To be completed by the person wishing to donate their body, or
PART II: To be completed by the Estate Trustee / Next of Kin or person lawfully in possession of the body.
NOTE: Only one part is to be completed based on the circumstance
Please mail the documents with original signatures to:
Lindsay Jones
Room M200, Faculty of Health Sciences & Wellness
Humber College Institute of Technology & Advance Learning
205 Humber College Blvd
Toronto, ON M9W 5L7
EMERGENCY 24-HR. PHONE:
McKinnon and Bowes Ltd.
416-465-7508, or 1-800-268-6736.
McKinnon and Bowes are to be called IF the forms have been completed and submitted to Humber.
*Call this number to report a death or when death is imminent.
If forms have not been completed and death occurs, Lindsay Jones, is to be called to assist the next of kin in completing and submitting the forms.
Lindsay Jones, 416-675-6622 ext. 4862.
For our files, please provide us with a copy of the first page of your legal will confirming your choice of an estate trustee or a letter from you confirming the same. This document along with the completed bequeathal form is required before the body can be transported for donation purposes.
At the time of death or when death is imminent, the estate trustee or next of kin should call McKinnon and Bowes Ltd. 416-465-7508, or 1-800-268-6736.
Please note that acceptance of the body is at the discretion of Humber College ITAL, and is dependent on prevailing circumstances at the time of death. Medical personnel in hospitals, hospices or nursing homes will require consent from the estate trustee or next of kin to release “cause of death and all other medical information” to a representative of Humber College.
This information is essential at the time of death if the only option selected for donation is to the Bioscience Division at Humber College, as it will be required to make a decision regarding acceptance of the remains.
A private funeral with the body present will not be possible prior to human body donation.
The donated body will remain with Humber College for a period of time from 14 days up to five years (depending to which program the donation has been made) before cremation and interment of the cremated remains in the Humber College Commemorative Plot at Elgin Mills Cemetery.
A Service of Committal is held in the summer each year. Families will be specifically notified in the year they are welcome to attend. Alternatively, the family may retrieve the remains for private interment.
The estate of the deceased will be responsible for payment of the cost of transportation, registration of the death in Ontario, and all documentation required by the family.
To assist the family, a funeral home service appointed by the College will be responsible for the transfer of the deceased from the place of death, for the municipal registration of death on behalf of the family, and for the preparation of the proof of death certificates and any other documentation required by the family. Humber College will take into consideration any preference the family may have for a specific funeral home to be responsible for the above.
Humber College will assume all costs thereafter related to the immediate embalmment, maintenance, cremation and interment of each of the cremated remains within the Humber College plot at Elgin Mills Cemetery.
Alternatively, the family may request retrieval of the remains for private interment at the cost of the estate. To retrieve remains, please contact Lindsay Jones, 416-675-6622 ext. 4862.