A hospital worker who spends all day working with dead people has given a fascinating insight into his unique job.
Daimon Winters, 49, earns his money by looking after patients who have already died.
He explained that the hospital has to care for deceased patients, so his job is to make sure they are safely and respectfully transferred from their place of death to the mortuary.
But his job doesn’t stop there, as he also has to dress the bodies ready for their funerals – and he takes requests from family members so the deceased are dressed in their best outfits.
Daimon, from Wolverhampton, told Birmingham Live: “I see myself as the liaison between porters and the mortuary and it means there is a more orderly process for the safe transfer of the deceased.
“It feels very respectful to think you’ve done a good job for the people’s families who are grieving and I’ve had a lot of positive feedback.”
Daimon has worked as a porter at New Cross Hospital, in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, and, after impressing bosses with his dedicated work, has now been named as the hospital’s first mortuary guardian.
The new role was created after Daimon stepped forward to assist with various aspects of mortuary work in response following a request for help from patient services last year.
The father of four and grandfather-of-one will now train small groups of porters over a 16-week period around the care and treatment of dead patients.
Dr Wendy Walker, reader in nursing, said: “Daimon’s commitment to supporting the mortuary team, together with the development of new skills and abilities, has inspired the development and implementation of a new initiative at New Cross Hospital.”
Facilities support officer Lee Pearson, who created the role, said: “The mortuary guardian is an essential position to provide families – as well as ward staff – with the peace of mind that their loved ones are being safely and respectfully transferred from the ward to the hospital mortuary.
“Our goal is to give the ward staff and families the assurance that the care and dignity for their family member is maintained and continued while in our porter’s care.
“Daimon’s previous experience in the mortuary made him the perfect candidate for this role and he’s helped put the training plan together and implement it across the portering department.”