more: ''It's been going on for years and it's appalling, but the health department told us not to complain to the hospital because they could make things worse for us,'' Mr Stewart said.

At other hospitals, undertakers were required to submit detailed paperwork at the medical records office before being escorted to the mortuary by a porter and monitored by a morgue attendant while they removed the body.

Height of hypocrisy: an undertaker trying to look sad at a 100 thousand dollar funeral.