Funeral directors in our region are ready for a second wave of the coronavirus. That is what several funeral directors say to Studio040.
During the first wave, in March and April, especially small, independent funeral directors noticed that it was difficult to obtain personal protective equipment.
Challenge
“That was a challenge at first. I scoured many a shop, but hand disinfection gel was hard to get”, Eindhoven funeral director, says Stefani de Bie.
“Luckily I have my own supplies and I haven’t been without protection. Meanwhile, I have a huge stock of masks, disinfectant and so on. So I am prepared for a second wave”, De Bie says.
More intimate atmosphere at funerals
“I think I’ve had some really amazing funerals these past few months”, De Bie says. “That was because the atmosphere was very intimate”.
“Dutch culture is always such that we’re tough when we hold emotions in. That’s what people do when they know that colleagues, neighbours or the boss are in the room. Now you had ceremonies where people were in very intimate circles and dared to let themselves go a bit more”, De Bie says.
Staff rotation
The national funeral home Monuta has had no shortage of personal protective equipment. The organisation has other branches in the Netherlands and deploys personnel more flexibly.
“We are training colleagues who normally do other work within the funeral group so that they can be used as a second person at a furnace when it’s busy”, Maarten Pouwels, of Monuta, says.
“If there is an outbreak in the north, for example, we can deploy colleagues in the south of the Netherlands more quickly with more expertise”, Pouwels says. “Should there be a second wave, we are certainly well prepared for it”.
Source: www.studio040.nl
Translated by: Bob
Edited by: Nicole
