TECHNICAL ORIENTATION OF EMBALMING CHAPTER 4 TECHNICAL ORIENTATION OF EMBALMING

General Rules of the Prep Room The prep room is a confidential and private room. Only the embalmers and those allowed by the state should be allowed in. When not being used the prep room should still have limited entry. The prep room should have signage that shows it is a private area and should have all OSHA warnings.

General Rules of the Prep Room The prep room should have a lock on the door or some type of security plan so that unauthorized people don’t wander in. The dignity of the remains must be maintained at all times. All people in the prep room should maintain the highest moral standards at all times.

General Rules of the Prep Room A clean and healthy environment should be maintained. The proper supply of chemicals and items necessary for the embalming should always be available. The proper number of tables should be present to minimize moving the remains. An embalming report should be used.

The Preparation Room The book goes into great detail about the location, size, physical design, flooring, windows, doors & ceilings, walls, plumbing, an ventilation. The reality is that although this information is worthwhile if you’re going to build your own funeral, most of you are not. Most of you are going to work for a funeral home, or will purchase

The Preparation Room A funeral home where the preparation room is already in existence. Answer questions 2 and 3 at the back of the chapter but don’t study this information for quiz and testing purposes. There is too much other valuable material that you need to spend your time learning and need to be tested on.

The Preparation Room I am most concerned in this chapter that you learn the preparation room equipment and instrumentation.

Preparation Room Equipment Tables- embalming tables are available with: stainless-steel or porcelain tops cast iron, steel, or aluminum bases Historical Injection Apparatus included: gravity method (still used in cavity embalming) bulb syringe

Preparation Room Equipment Combination of gravity and bulb syringe Hand pumps Air Pressure machines The present day apparatus is a motorized Centrifugal Pump. Terms associated with the pump are: pressure- the force required to distribute the embalming solution throughout the body.

Preparation Room Equipment Rate of flow- the amount of embalming solution that enters the body in a given period and is measured in ounces per minute. Potential pressure- the pressure reading on the gauge indicating the pressure in the delivery line of the machine with the rate-of flow valve closed or the arterial tubing clamped shut. Differential pressure- the difference between the potential pressure reading and the actual pressure reading.

Preparation Room Equipment Actual pressure- the reading on the pressure gauge when the rate-of-flow valve is open and the arterial solution is entering the body.

General Instruments Aneurysm Needle- used for tissue dissection for the location and elevation of arteries and veins. Bistoury Knife- a curved cutting instrument that cuts from the inside outward. Hemostat (locking Forceps)- can be used to clam leaking vessels. Dressing forceps are very long hemostats.

General Instruments Scapel- a sharp cutting instrument used for making incisions. Scissors- used for cutting and to open arteries and veins. Separator- used to keep vessels elevated above the incision.

General Instruments Suture Needles include: half-curved doubled-curved circle loopuypt Suture thread is made of: nylon cotton linen

General Instruments Spring Forceps- used for grasping and holding tissue and used as a drainage instrument. Arterial Tube- come in many sizes. They are threaded to a stopcock. They are inserted into the artery for injection. Stopcock-used to attach the delivery hose from the embalming machine to the arterial tube.

General Instruments Y Tube- used for injecting both legs and arms, or both sides of the head at the same time on an autopsied remains. Drain Tube- metal cylinder to be inserted into a vein. Iliac Drain Tube- a drain tube inserted into the iliac toward the right atrium of the heart. Grooved Director- used to expand a vein to help guide a drainage device.

Aspirating Instruments Autopsy Aspirator- used to aspirate blood and arterial fluid from the cavities of autopsied remains. Hydroaspirator- an aspirating device that creates a vacuum when water is run through the mechanism. Nasal Tube Aspirator-used to aspirate the nose or throat.

Aspirating Instruments Trocar- a long hollow needle used to aspirate and inject body cavities. Hypovalve Trocar- designed for hypodermic treatment and is used for injection only. Cavity Fluid Injector- screws onto the cavity fluid bottle and when inverted the fluid flows through the trocar into the cavity

Aspirating Instruments Trocar Button- a threaded plastic screw used for closing trocar punctures or other small punctures. Trocar Button Applicator- used to insert the trocar button.

Feature Setting Devices Eyecaps- plastic disks inserted under the eyelids. Mouth Formers- plastic or metal devices used to replace the teeth when the natural teeth or dentures are absent. Needle Injector- used to insert a “barb” into the mandible and maxilla to hold the lower jaw in a closed position.

Positioning Devices Head Rests Arm and Hand Rests Sometimes these are also referred to as “armatures.”

Plastic Undergarments Plastic garments help control leakage from the autopsied body or the condition of edema. They include: Plastic stockings which cover from the feet to the upper thigh. Plastic pants which cover the waist to the upper thigh. Plastic unionall which cover the entire body except the hands and face.

Plastic Undergarments Plastic Coveralls which cover from the upper thigh to the armpit.