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ANATOMY ACT, 1965 (ACT 280)
ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS
Section
1. Licence for examination, etc.,
of bodies of deceased individuals.
2. Persons having lawful custody
of bodies of deceased individuals
to permit examination, etc., of
such bodies.
3. Individuals directing
examination, etc., of their bodies
after death.
4. Executor prohibited from
permitting examination, etc., of
bodies in certain circumstances.
5. Unclaimed bodies of deceased
individuals for examination, etc.
6. Bodies of deceased individuals
not to be removed for twenty-four
hours, etc.
7. Requirements to be complied
with by licensee for removal of
body, etc.
8. Requirements to be complied
with by licensee for receipt of
body.
9. Head of medical school or
institution to cause to be
retained in certain circumstances
the whole or part of a body.
10. Saving.
11. Offences.
12. Regulations.
13. Interpretation.
THE TWO HUNDRED AND EIGHTIETH
ACT OF THE PARLIAMENT OF THE
REPUBLIC OF GHANA
ENTITLED
THE ANATOMY ACT, 1965 (ACT 280)
AN ACT to regulate the examination
and dissection of the bodies of
deceased individuals and to
provide for matters connected
therewith or incidental thereto.
DATE OF ASSENT: 9th April, 1965.
BE IT ENACTED by the President and
the National Assembly in this
present Parliament assembled as
follows:—
Section 1—Licence for Examination,
Etc., of Bodies of Deceased
Individuals.
(1) The Minister may grant a
licence authorising the carrying
out, in accordance with the
provisions of this Act, of the
matters specified in subsection
(2), to the persons referred to in
that subsection.
(2) The licence referred to in
subsection (1) of this section
shall authorise—
(a) the Head of any medical
school or institution,
(b) any teacher and medical
practitioner employed in such a
school or institution, and
(c) any student working under the
supervision of any person referred
to in paragraph (a) or (b) of this
subsection,
to carry out all, or any of the
following matters:—
(i)
to receive in that school or
institution the body of a deceased
individual;
(ii) to keep or possess therein
that body;
(iii) to examine therein that
body;
(iv) to dissect therein that body;
and
(v) to carry out any other matter
specified in the licence which the
Minister is of opinion is in the
interests of medical science.
(3) No person other than a
licensee, shall carry out any of
the matters referred to in
subsection (2) of this section.
Section 2—Persons having Lawful
Custody of Bodies of Deceased
Individuals to Permit Examination,
Etc., of such Bodies.
The executor or any other person
having lawful possession of the
body of a deceased individual, and
not being an undertaker or other
person entrusted with that body
for the purpose only of interment,
may permit any licensee to carry
out in relation to that body any
matter referred to in subsection
(2) of section 1, unless to the
knowledge of that executor or
person, the deceased individual
has expressed a contrary desire,
in writing at any time during his
life or by word of mouth in the
presence of at least two witnesses
during the illness whereof he
died, or unless the surviving
husband or wife, or in the absence
of such husband or wife, any known
relative of the deceased
individual falling within such
class of relatives of that
individual as may be prescribed,
is opposed to such matter being
carried out.
Section 3—Individuals Directing
Examination, Etc., of their Bodies
after Death.
If any individual either in
writing at any time during his
life, or by word of mouth, in the
presence of at least two witnesses
during the illness whereof he
died, directs that any licensee
shall carry out in relation to his
body after death any matter
specified in subsection (2) of
section 1 and if before the burial
or cremation of his body the
direction is made known to the
executor or any other person
having lawful possession of the
body, then that executor or person
shall permit that licensee to
carry out that matter unless the
surviving husband or wife or in
the absence of such husband or
wife, any known relative of the
deceased individual falling within
such class of relatives of that
individual as may be prescribed,
is opposed to that matter being
carried out.
Section 4—Executor Prohibited from
Permitting Examination, Etc., of
Bodies in certain Circumstances.
No executor or other person having
lawful possession of the body of a
deceased individual shall permit
any person to carry out in
relation to that body any matter
referred to in subsection (2) of
section 1, if that individual
during his life has expressed a
contrary desire in the manner set
out in section 2 or if the
surviving wife or husband or known
relative, as the case may be, is
opposed to that matter being
carried out.
Section 5—Unclaimed Bodies of
Deceased Individuals for
Examination, Etc.
The medical Head of any hospital
may donate the body of any
deceased individual dying of known
causes to the Head of any medical
school or institution for carrying
out by him or any other licensee
in relation to that body any
matter referred to in subsection
(2) of section 1, if the Head of
the hospital is satisfied that
that body has not been claimed by
the surviving wife or husband, or
in the absence of such wife or
husband, by any known relative of
that individual falling within
such class of relatives of that
individual as may be prescribed,
for a period which in his opinion
has been unreasonably long.
Section 6—Bodies of Deceased
Individuals not to be removed for
Twenty-Four Hours, Etc.
No licensee shall remove the body
of a deceased individual for the
purpose of carrying out in
relation to that body any matter
referred to in subsection (2) of
section 1—
(a) unless at least twenty-four
hours have elapsed since the death
of that individual; and
(b) unless—
(i)
a certificate stating the cause of
death has been signed by the
medical practitioner who attended
him during his last illness; and
(ii) if there is no such
practitioner, a certificate
stating the cause of death to the
best of his knowledge has been
signed by a medical practitioner
who has been summoned to view the
body after the death.
Section 7—Requirements to be
Complied with by Licensee for
Removal of Body, Etc.
(1) No licensee shall remove a
body of a deceased individual for
carrying out any matter specified
in subsection (2) of section 1
unless that body is placed in a
decent coffin or shell and is
removed therein.
(2) Every licensee shall—
(a) make provision that after he
has finished with the body of the
deceased individual, the body
shall be decently interred in a
public cemetery; and
(b) transmit a certificate of the
interment of that body issued by
the competent authority to the
Minister or to any person
appointed by him.
Section 8—Requirements to be
Complied with by Licensee for
Receipt of Body.
(1) No licensee shall receive any
body of a deceased individual for
the purpose of carrying out in
relation to that body any matter
referred to in subsection (2) of
section 1 unless—
(a) he receives with that body
the certificate of cause of death
referred to in section 6; and
(b) within twenty-four hours of
the receipt of that body, he
enters or cause to be entered in a
book maintained for the purpose—
(i)
the day and hour when the body was
received;
(ii) the name and address of the
person from whom the body was
received;
(iii) the date and place of
death;
(iv) the sex of the deceased
individual;
(v) the name and age of such
individual, if known;
(vi) the last address of such
individual, if known; and
(vii) such other particulars as
may be prescribed.
(2) The Head of any medical school
or institution shall produce the
book referred to in subsection (1)
of this section, whenever required
so to do by the Minister.
Section 9—Head of Medical School
or Institution to Cause to be
Retained in certain Circumstances
the Whole or Part of a Body.
(1) The Head of a medical school
or institution may cause to be
retained the whole or a part of
the body of a deceased individual
if—
(a) he is satisfied that the
retention thereof is in the
interests of medical science; and
(b) the competent authorities have
consented to the retention.
(2) For the purposes of
subsection (1) of this section,
"competent authorities" means the
executor or other party having
lawful possession of the body of
the deceased individual and the
surviving wife or husband of that
individual and, in the absence of
such wife or husband, any known
relative of the deceased
individual falling within such
class of relatives of that
individual as may be prescribed.
Section 10—Saving.
Nothing in this Act shall be
deemed to prohibit any post-mortem
examination of any human body
required or directed to be made by
any competent legal authority.
Section 11—Offences.
(1) Any person who contravenes any
provision of this Act other than
subsection (3) of section 1 shall
be guilty of an offence and shall,
on summary conviction be liable to
a fine not exceeding fifty pounds
or to a term of imprisonment not
exceeding three months or to both
such fine and imprisonment.
(2) Any person who contravenes
subsection (3) of section 1 shall
be guilty of an offence and shall,
on summary conviction be liable to
a fine not exceeding five hundred
pounds or to a term of
imprisonment not exceeding two
years or to both such fine and
imprisonment.
Section 12—Regulations.
The Minister may make regulations
for prescribing anything
authorised by this Act to be
prescribed by regulations and for
providing for the form of any
licence or certificate issued
under this Act and for any other
matter that appears to him to be
necessary for carrying into effect
the provisions of this Act.
Section 13—Interpretation.
In this Act, unless the context
otherwise requires—
"licensee" means any person to
whom a licence has been granted
under section 1 and referred to in
subsection (2) of that section;
"medical practitioner" means a
medical practitioner registered
under the Medical and Dental Act,
1959 (No. 36);
"medical school or institution"
means a medical school or other
medical institution recognized by
the Minister for the purposes of
this Act; and
"Minister" means the Minister
responsible for Health.
"prescribed" means prescribed by
regulations made under section 12.
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