Probe into body parts scandal

SYDNEY - A leading Australian university has been forced to make an embarrassing public apology amid a police probe into the mishandling of body parts used by trainee surgeons.

The University of New South Wales yesterday apologised to relatives of people whose donated bodies were allegedly inappropriately handled and fondled.

The macabre scandal erupted last October when employees alerted the university to claims that body parts used in a laboratory used to train surgeons were being abused.

Police are investigating claims about the mistreatment of cadavers, including fondling of genital areas and misuse of a head for degrading purposes. An audit carried out by the university also found that some remains had been sexually interfered with and piled together in coffins.

University staff are working with NSW Health's anatomy inspector to try to identify the body parts. The university receives about 45 cadavers a year and it is not yet clear how many have been mishandled.

University vice-chancellor Professor Fred Hilmer said a senior member of the university's medical faculty had already been sacked while another staff member had quit. Two other staff members remain under investigation. "The university is committed to ensuring that bodies are handled with the utmost respect. We apologise to the families affected by these very distressing allegations."

UNSW's school of anatomy has already had its licence to conduct anatomy classes revoked. The surgical skills laboratory at the centre of the scandal has also been closed. The university is working on ways to improve the labelling of body parts using electronic microchips and better ways to store cadavers.

It denies ignoring claims raised by a whistleblower three years ago about the abuse. The National Tertiary Education Union claims a laboratory supervisor who tried to raise the alarm now faces dismissal for overseeing the mislabelling of body parts. But deputy vice-chancellor Professor Richard Henry said UNSW had no interest in making the supervisor a scapegoat. "Our overriding concern is to fully understand what happened and to address any deficiencies."

Australian Medical Association president Dr Mukesh Haikerwal said harsh penalties should be imposed on anyone found responsible. He feared it could make people less inclined to donate their bodies to science.

Criminal penalties of up to 10 years' jail exist for illegally interfering with bodies.

- AAP