Willed Body Program

The UCSF Willed Body Program (WBP) does an amazing job of providing an unusual and important service. They give donated cadavers to medical and other health profession schools to enable students to learn about the relationship between the systems and structure of the human body and to develop new surgical procedures.
In his last act, by donating his body, the UCSF WBP enabled my father to die as he lived exercising his values of supporting education, recycling, reuse, helping the environment and saving money. The program will cremate his body and scatter his ashes at sea; this process has a smaller environmental impact than traditional cemetery burial and the service is free.
Originally, my father had applied to the Stanford University Willed Body Program, but because he had edema of 2+ (it took 2 or more seconds for his skin smooth out after being poked by a finger), they were unwilling to take his body. I quickly did my research, learned about the UCSF Willed Body Program, and with his approval filled out the requisite forms. The staff processed his request promptly.
I was impressed with the thoughtful manner in which the staff collected his body. They asked when I wanted them to come and provided flexible scheduling. They also allowed our family as much time with his body as we wanted. As a further sign of respect, they were dressed in suits, not medical garb, and very gently lifted his body from his bed and moved it into a maroon colored body bag on a gurney, which they zipped closed. As he was living in a community of other elders, transporting his body in the common space this way was considerate.