How Do I Know It’s Mom?

A Detailed 8-Step Guide to Sunshine Cremation’s Identification Procedures

It is natural to wonder when you get the cremated remains of your loved one from a funeral home.

“How do I know these are my loved one’s ashes?”

Sunshine Cremation Services is acutely aware of these worries and far exceeds industry standards with our ironclad identification procedures.  

We know your loved one is precious, and we endeavor to treat each person as our family. Our skilled team strictly follows enhanced protocols, ensuring your loved one’s identity is unquestionably maintained throughout the cremation process.

Below is our 8-step process to ensure that when we return your loved one’s cremated remains to you, you can be confident it is your relative in the urn.  

Step 1 – Confirmation of Positive Identification When We Take Custody

Many people would be surprised how often nursing homes and hospitals misplace and lose track of their deceased patients or call the wrong funeral home. We cannot control the acts of others, nor can we ensure that other entities do a good job. As a result, the highest risk of an error in handling your loved one is that a healthcare facility gives us the wrong person.  

We attempt to mitigate this risk by refusing to accept custody until the applicable healthcare facility has provided paperwork confirming the decedent’s identity and verified through ankle and wristbands that the individual is who they are supposed to be. We enforce this protocol irrespective of your loved one’s location because, while we trust healthcare workers, we verify their work.  

Step 2 – Additional identification: Supplemental Identification Bands 

Following the facility identification process, we place a Sunshine Cremation ID band on your loved one’s ankle. This ID band serves two purposes. First, it is a double labeling of your loved one. Second, since our employee has to prepare this ID band, we have an audit trail of who cared for people in our care and verified your loved one’s identity. 

Step 3 – Arrival Verification: We Double-Check Identification

Upon arrival at our facility, the ID band details are re-verified, and your loved one is registered in our system. We maintain a physical (paper) and a digital (computer) registration system. Again, this provides an automatic audit trail of where your loved one is.  

We also attach a large indelible ink name tag to the outerwear of everyone in our care. We do this because ankle and wristbands are small and often difficult to read. Large external name tags eliminate misreading and are clearly visible across a large room. 

Since we also use video monitoring, the external name tags are visible on our video records.  

Step 4 – Daily Checks: Reconfirmation of Identity

Our attentive staff conducts daily reviews to reaffirm each individual’s identity and location while under our care. We reconcile the daily checks against our physical and digital records to ensure that unnoticed errors do not occur.  

Step 5 – Crematory Transition: Safeguarding Identity 

Upon receiving the necessary cremation permit from the Medical Examiner, we document the transition of your loved one from our facility to the crematory. In this process, we reconfirm their identity and attach additional relevant paperwork to your loved one so their file travels with them when moved. 

Step 6 – Crematory Verification: Identity Reconfirmed (Again)

At the crematory, we conduct yet another round of identification verification. Your loved one is placed in a cremation container (large box) bearing their name and additional identifying information (in case other people have similar names). Your loved one’s name and identifying information on the cremation container are written in indelible ink and are very large so that they can be seen from a distance. Your loved one’s paperwork and prior name tags are placed in the cremation container to provide additional confirmation of identity. All ankle and wrist tags remain on your loved one. As such, there are typically between 5 and 10 identifying tags, labels, and documents with your loved one at this stage.  

Step 7 – Cremation: Permanent Record for Future Verification

Before cremation, we create a heat-resistant stainless-steel disk with a unique ID number for your loved one. Since the disk is heat resistant, the cremation process does not damage it. 

Your loved one’s disk is placed in the retort (furnace) before the cremation and identifies your loved one’s cremated remains after cremation. The disk provides an enduring record for future identification needs.

Step 8 – Post-Cremation: Unquestionable Proof of Identity

We place the identification disk in the urn containing your loved one’s cremated remains. We also provide a cremation certificate containing the same unique identification number stamped into the identification disk. 

The disk and cremation certificate offers an unshakeable assurance of the identity of your loved one’s remains. 

If, at any time in the future, you want to confirm that the cremated remains you received are those of your loved one, all you have to do is open the urn and compare the disk to the cremation certificate. The same identification number on the disk and the certificate means you have the correct cremated remains.  

Sunshine Cremation Services invites any inquiries regarding our cremation and funeral services and our rigorous identification protocols. We are dedicated to providing peace of mind during this emotionally challenging time. With Sunshine Cremation Services, you can rest assured that your loved one is handled with the utmost respect and care.