Splashing Pumpkins

Death in the family is a kind of experience where anyone can get emotional. During this time people need to act smartly, but most of the time people are not ready for the situation and are confused as how to handle it.

Well, after someone dies in the family, you need to keep in mind the religious, ethnic, or cultural background of your family and then plan accordingly. However, soon after death there are certain matters that you need to take care of. To help you out during this time, here is a list of some important matters that should be considered. But before following the steps you need to bear in mind that all of the points will not be applicable in all the cases, but many of them will.

Here are the steps that you need follow after someone dies in the family:

• If the death occurs in the hospital, there will be a specific department who will take care of all the necessary formalities and paperwork for you. The hospital authority will provide you with a signed Death Certificate where the cause, time, and place of death will be mentioned. You will need his Death Certificate in order to make further funeral arrangements.
• If the death occurs at home or some other place, you will have to contact a local police officer or coroner immediately in order to get a signed Death Certificate. Also till someone else comes make sure the dead is lying flat or else the joints will become stiff and there will be difficulty in moving the dead body.
• In case the deceased person has wished for donating his body parts and tissues, you need to inform the doctor within one or two hours after the death. If there is some kind of delay, the organs of the deceased cannot be transplanted into living people who need them. For more information regarding organ donation you can visit www.livingbank.org and www.donatelife.net.
• Next you need to notify family members and friends who are close to the deceased. You can ask someone else to inform other people about the death. This will help you to save time that you can use to plan other important things.
• Many times people have some wishes regarding his or her funeral. So you need to look for such instructions regarding preferences for funeral and burial arrangements. Once you know the wishes of the deceased, you will have to discuss the same with other family members and then plan accordingly.  In case the deceased has not mentioned about his wishes, family members can decide whether there should be burial or cremation. Read the article at www.cremationresource.org on whether to cremate or bury to make a wise decision.
• Make special arrangements for the funeral service. Here you need to bear in mind that funeral service is not necessary if the death has occurred in some country or state.  To know in details about funeral service, visit www.ftc.gov .
• Next you need to contact a funeral home nearby and look for the procedure regarding burial or cremation arrangements. It is up to the wishes of the deceased or the family members as whether the dead body should be buried or cremated. Visit www.cremationresource.org to know about how cremation is done.
• After the burial or cremation process is over you need to focus on important paper works that needs to be completed within a fixed time period after the death of a person. You must start with the Social Security Number of the deceased. Contact the local office of Social Security Administration in your state and other important Government agencies from where the deceased was suppose to get necessary payments.
• Now as a family member you need to take care of the financial affairs of the deceased. First look for the Will made by the deceased. Other important financial documents are Safe Deposit Agreements; Nuptial Agreements; Trusts, Life Insurance Policies; Health Insurance Policies; Existence of Trust; Pension-retirement Benefits; Old Tax Returns; Divorce Documentation; Bank Statements; Securities; Business Related Documents; and Bills which are not yet paid. Collect all the documents properly and then take help of some financial organization to assist you.
• In case the deceased has left behind a Will you need to take it to the appropriate office in order to have it accepted for probate. In the Will there will be a proper mention about the Personal Representative also known as Executor who will be legally responsible for the administration of the financial matters of the deceased.
• If the deceased has not prepared a Will, then the local Court will appoint an administrator. It is the duty of the administrator to make a list of all the relevant assets belonging to the deceased and then distribute it amongst family members as per the current state laws.
• Once all the paper works are done and things have become normal, you must plan a memorial service in the memory of the deceased. It is not necessary to plan a lavish memorial service as even a simple get together of the family members and friends will be a great honor for the deceased.

To conclude, coping with the loss of a family member is difficult. However with the above mentioned information you will get a basic idea on what you may need to do in the first few days following a death. If things are done in a systematic and proper manner, it becomes easier for the family members to cope with the sudden loss in their lives and lead a better life in future.

For more information on this topic you can visit the below mentioned websites:

• www.nia.nih.gov
• www.cobar.org
• www.unclefed.com

Filed under: Funeral