Body Donations
In South Africa, several universities offer body donation programs that play a crucial role in training medical and health sciences students. Donated bodies are utilized for teaching anatomy to medical, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, and science students, as well as for training professionals in new techniques. If you or a family member are interested in body donation, please contact any of the following major institutions.
University of Cape Town (UCT) – Department of Human Biology
Eligibility: Donors should reside in the greater Cape Town area.
Contact: Michael.Cassar@uct.ac.za
University of the Free State (UFS)
University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) – Discipline of Clinical Anatomy
Eligibility: Donors should reside in the Durban area.
Contact: bodydonation@ukzn.ac.za
University of Pretoria – National Tissue Bank (NTB)
Eligibility: Donors must reside within 200 km of Pretoria.
Contact: ntb@up.ac.za
Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University (SMU)
Stellenbosch University – Division of Clinical Anatomy
Eligibility: Donors should reside in the Western Cape.
Contact: su_bodydonations@sun.ac.za
University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) – School of Anatomical Sciences
Eligibility: Donors should reside within approximately 300 km of Johannesburg.
Contact: Faith.Sambo@wits.ac.za
Anyone can register to donate their remains at any point during their lifetime or family may also donate your remains as a next of kin donor.
Donated bodies are used for various purposes, including:
- Anatomy education: Students in medical and health science fields learn human anatomy through dissection.
- Surgical training: Surgical specialists use cadavers to hone their practical skills.
- Research: Bodies are used in research to advance medical knowledge.
All body donation programs adhere to the National Health Act and ethical guidelines to ensure respectful and legal use of donated bodies.
All donations are an altruistic gift and costs, such as transportation and cremation, are covered by the institutions.
Institutions may not pay the donor or the family any money for the donation.
Donors can choose to have their remains returned to their families after dissection and cremation, or they can donate their bodies to the institution indefinitely.