HM Inspector of Anatomy for Scotland Annual Report to the Scottish Ministers 1 April 2025 – 31 March 2026

Conclusion

All departments are working well to a very high standard and without exception, all meeting the requirements of The Anatomy (Regulations) 2006.

The body donor programme is working well with the requirements for courses run by the 5 Scottish medical schools and the 2 Royal Colleges largely being met although more donations would allow more to be done both in education and research. The appendix highlights just some of the work being carried out in Scotland as a result of the generosity and the willingness of the Scottish public to donate their bodies to medical science. The public can also be assured that every donation received is treated with dignity and the utmost respect at all times.

All staff should be commended for maintaining the high standard that they achieve with particular thanks to the Bequest Coordinators who have to deal with members of the public at a particularly difficult and sensitive time in their lives. They are invariably the first point of contact with a department and therefore fundamentally important in maintaining the success of the body donor programme.

Finally, I would like to thank the Scottish Government Burial and Cremation Team for their ongoing help and support over the past year.

Professor Gordon Findlater

HMIAS

24^th June 2026