Mortuary Affairs
Mission
The Role 2 is not the doctrinal home of Mortuary Affairs (MA), but Role 2 teams have decedents — from triage T4 categorization, from intra-operative or post-operative deaths, from prolonged holding deterioration. The team’s mission with respect to decedents is dignified care of remains, accurate pronouncement and documentation, preservation of evidence and personal effects, and coordination of transfer to a Mortuary Affairs Collection Point (MACP).
Personnel & Task Organization
In the absence of dedicated MA assets at the Role 2, designated team members fulfill MA functions. Pronouncement is a physician role. Documentation, chain-of-custody, and preparation of remains can be assigned to corpsmen and nursing staff with proper training.
Notification of family is a command function, not a Role 2 function. The team’s responsibility ends at proper documentation and handoff.
Equipment & Logistics
- Human remains pouches, in sufficient supply for predicted MASCAL conditions.
- Personal effects bags and inventory forms.
- Identification tags or equivalent.
- Refrigeration capability where mission duration requires (otherwise rapid handoff to MACP).
- Documentation forms.
Doctrinal References
- JP 4-06, Mortuary Affairs
- MCRP 4-11.8 (or current MA reference)
- Service-specific guidance on physician pronouncement of death.
- Local command policy on MACP coordination.
Clinical Practice Guidelines
Not directly applicable in the clinical CPG sense. JTS guidance on declaration of death and on performance improvement applies.
Decision Points
| Decision | Trigger | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Pronouncement | Clinical death | Documented pronouncement by physician |
| Chain of custody initiation | Decedent enters Role 2 control | Tag, document, secure |
| Personal effects | Recovered with remains | Inventoried, bagged separately, transferred with remains |
| Transfer to MACP | MACP coordination complete | Document handoff; close chain of custody at the Role 2 |
| Forensic considerations | Suspected non-battle death; criminal investigation potential | Preserve evidence; minimize manipulation; coordinate with appropriate authority |
Linked ELOs
| TLO | ELO | Primary or Secondary |
|---|---|---|
| Team Development | TD-7 (ethics) | Primary |
| Team Development | TD-8 (resilience — moral injury context) | Primary |
| Trauma Integration | TI-5 (documentation) | Primary |
Forms & Documentation
- Pronouncement note.
- Personal effects inventory.
- Chain-of-custody form.
- MACP handoff documentation.
- Internal AAR contribution covering circumstances.
Reference Imagery
Last reviewed: • OPSEC reviewed: