Body donation platform
Why donate your body to SHIFT ?
There are a wide range of personal and circumstantial reasons why people wish to donate their bodies to a taphonomy facility such as SHIFT. Most donors motivate their bequests by a desire to :
- to help and participate in the advancement of taphonomic and forensic sciences
- to express their gratitude and appreciation for the fields of taphonomic and forensic sciences
- to contribute and be useful to society after death
- to reduce the financial and emotional burden of planning a funeral
Donating a body is a selfless and altruistic act, which helps to advance scientific knowledge and benefit present and future generations.
Our bodies belong to us. So, while we are still alive, we can decide what will happen to our body if we wish to donate it.
Role of SHIFT
SHIFT is a unit of the Centre Universitaire Romand de Médecine Légale (CURML) at the CHUV. SHIFT is responsible for expertise, teaching and research into the decomposition of corpses. It has a secure outdoor facility dedicated mainly to training and to the physical, chemical and biological study of human decomposition.
SHIFT is committed to applying strict ethical principles in terms of respect for bodies, the dignity and anonymity of the deceased, and the treatment of bodies and remains. One of SHIFT's missions is to provide training on the post-mortem fate of the body to doctors, biologists, forensic specialists, police and judicial personnel, and funeral professionals in particular, at both pre-graduate and post-graduate levels.
SHIFT thus administers the donation of bodies to the taphonomic and forensic sciences. SHIFT hosts training and research activities involving the use of human bodies. Funerary biocomposting is a research project on new techniques for transforming corpses as an alternative to burial and cremation.
All donations are accepted on the basis of informed consent. During their lifetime, donors receive information about the research and teaching practices carried out at SHIFT. Discussions with the family, the medical profession and close friends are greatly encouraged to ensure that the donor's wishes are respected after their death.
All research projects conducted at SHIFT must receive prior approval from an ethics committee.
Funerary biocomposting donation platform
The ‘Funerary biocomposting’ project aims to characterise natural funerary biocomposting as a means of transforming the bodies of the deceased into humus over a decomposition period of several months (4 to 9 months), more in keeping with the mourning period while minimising environmental impacts.
This project will help authorities in their decisions to implement alternative methods of treating the bodies of the deceased to the traditional methods of burial and cremation, which are less and less in line with the socio-economic, demographic and cultural requirements of the population, but also with the professional expectations of local cemetery services.
SHIFT offers all the guarantees of ethical, professional, safety and project management skills needed to carry out such taphonomic studies.
How do I register to donate my body ?
The body donation consent form can be requested from the SHIFT secretariat by calling : +41 (0) 79 556 84 72
The body donation consent form is also available from the SHIFT secretariat by email : shift@chuv.ch
A written request is also possible :
Don de Corps
Swiss Human Institute of Forensic Taphonomy (SHIFT)
Centre Universitaire Romand de Médecine Légale
Chemin de la Vulliette 4
CH-1000 Lausanne 25
Suisse