Public health funerals for Covid patients

Response to this request is long overdue. By law, under all circumstances, Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust should have responded by now (details). You can complain by requesting an internal review.

Hi there

This is a Freedom of Information request regarding public health funerals the trust has undertaken during the Covid-19 pandemic. Could you please tell me:

1. How many public health funerals the trust has undertaken for patients who have died of Covid (within 28 days of the first positive test) with no known relatives or next of kin.

I'm looking for information relating to the period between March 2 2020 and March 2 2021. Can the information please be broken down by ethnicity, age and gender for each patient? If doing this exceeds the cost limit and the scope needs narrowing, could ethnicity be prioritised, followed by age, please?

2. How many Covid deaths (within 28 days of the first positive test) have been recorded by the trust between March 2 2020 and March 2 2021.

3. How much a public health funeral typically costs the trust, and if possible, how much has been spent on public health funerals by the trust between March 2 2020 and March 2 2021.

4. The relationship between the trust and the local authority/authorities when it comes to public health funerals and the processes involved in deciding who is responsible for arranging them.

5. What is provided by the trust at a public health funeral.

Yours faithfully,
Sam Gelder

FREEDOMOFINFORMATION (DARTFORD AND GRAVESHAM NHS TRUST), Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust

Dear Sam,

 

FOI request duly noted – I will ensure you receive a response within the
statutory 20 working day deadline.

 

It would truly help our statistics for internal reporting if you could
confirm if you are a freelance journalist or from a commercial company?

 

Please note that in order to gather together the information requested; it
is necessary to share your details within the Trust as your request will
be forwarded onto the relevant departments involved.

 

As part of our responsibilities under the Freedom of Information Act, it
will also be necessary to include your request within our disclosure log
published via the Trust’s website.

 

Regards,

FOI Act Lead
Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust

 

 

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FREEDOMOFINFORMATION (DARTFORD AND GRAVESHAM NHS TRUST), Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust

Dear Sam,

 

Freedom of Information

With reference to your request detailed below, please see the Trust’s
response below in bold text.

 

With reference to question 2, the information you have requested is
published by NHS England, please see link: 

 [1]https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/st...

 

The Trust is therefore, not obligated to provide this information as this
information is covered under Section 21 (Information is Reasonably
Accessible to the Applicant by other means) of the Freedom of Information
Act 2000 

 

If you are unhappy with the service you have received in relation to your
request and wish to make a complaint or request a review of our decision,
you should write to:- 

 

Complaints / Claims Manager 

Admin, Level 3 

Darent Valley Hospital 

Darenth Wood Road 

Dartford 

Kent 

DA2 8DA 

 

Email: [2][email address

 

If, after we have addressed your complaint, you remain dissatisfied with
how the Trust has responded, you are entitled to appeal to the Information
Commissioner (Tel: 0303 123 1113). 

Further details can be found at [3]www.ico.org.uk 

                                                           

Kind regards,

 

FOI Act Lead
Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust

 

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