Body Donor Program

Department of Neuroscience

New Procedures Related to COVID-19

Our Gift of Body Donor Program has re-opened and is accepting donors to the program. Our re-opening guidelines may be found under the Funeral Director tab of this site. We have modified the acceptance criteria and must ask additional questions of each decedent prior to the delivery of their body to the program.

The 3rd annual Donor Remembrance, which was scheduled to take place May 12th this year, has officially been postponed in light of the current coronavirus pandemic.

Important Information About Visiting Washington University in St. Louis.

About the Program

The Body Donor Program coordinated through the Department of Neuroscience at Washington University School of Medicine accepts whole-body anatomical donations on an ongoing basis.

The School of Medicine appreciates the importance of gifts made by program participants and their families. Through this generosity, participants directly contribute to the advancement of medical education and biomedical research.

Anatomical donations are critical to helping medical students, resident physicians, clinical fellows and other trainees gain in-depth understanding of the human anatomy, an important foundation for the delivery of excellent patient care. Gifts made to the program also empower vital biomedical research aimed at improving human health.

A Letter From the Director

Amy Bauernfeind, PhD

Thank you for your interest in donating your body to Washington University School of Medicine. The Body Donation Program, which is coordinated through the Department of Neuroscience at Washington University, allows individuals to provide an important and very personal gift to the School of Medicine.

Body donation serves a vital role and allows medical students, allied health professionals, and physicians in training to gain the detailed knowledge of human anatomy that is essential in order to deliver the best quality care to their patients. All donor tissue is used to teach anatomy in the classroom and surgical settings. Gifts made to the program also allow clinician-scientists, whose ultimate goal is to assist in understanding mechanisms affecting human health and disease, to conduct vital research.
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Contact the Program

To learn more about the Body Donor Program at Washington University School of Medicine, please contact:


Dan Loesche Staff Embalmer Funeral Director	Ryan Zwyer Staff Assistant Embalmer Funeral Director

	(314) 362-3597 1 (855) 502-7894 (toll free)
	bodydonorprogram@wustl.edu