This action plan is for use when a postgraduate student at the Faculty of Medicine, Lund University passes on in order to avoid missing important elements. This does not preclude the Department/Unit from choosing to make different arrangements or carrying out additional inputs depending on the situation. 

General 

The Head of Research Administration at the Faculty Office is responsible for ensuring that everyone below, or equivalent, has access to an updated action plan. 

• The Chair of the Research Education Board 
• Assistant heads of department for coordination of education at postgraduate level 
• Chair of the Medical Postgraduate Association 

In addition, the action plan must be available on the Faculty of Medicine Intramed. 

Responsibility

The COORDINATOR of the action plan is the Head of Research Administration at the Faculty of Medicine Office. 

Contact details Head of Research Administration, Faculty of Medicine Office 

The Faculty of Medicine postgraduate students are either employed/attached to Lund University or employed by Region Skåne or another external employer. The normal case for employees within the faculty is that the Personnel Coordinator at the Department assumes the role of coordinator in the event of an employee decease. For research students who are employed at Lund University, however, the Head of Research Administration at the Faculty of Medicine Office bears overall responsibility. It is important that the Coordinator for postgraduate education and the personnel coordinator stay in touch in the event of the decease of a doctoral student in order to coordinate university inputs. 

For the group of research students who are employed by Region Skåne or another external employer, the coordinator must contact the head of research, or equivalent, at the organisation concerned. 

If information about the incident is first communicated to the Department, Course Director or other individual, the person receiving the information must immediately contact the Coordinator.

Action Plan

What to do, in the order stated: 

1. Information

The Coordinator should first check that the information about the decease is correct. This may include, for example, contacting the student’s family.

2. The Coordinator, who bears overall responsibility notifies: 

• The Chair of the Research Education Board
• Assistant heads of department for coordination of education at postgraduate level 
• The HR officer at the Department concerned
• The primary thesis supervisor
• Course Directors if the PhD student is enrolled in a course.
• Chair of the Medical Postgraduate Association 
• Head of Communications at the Faculty of Medicine 

The Head of Communications in turn notifies Head of Operations at the building concerned (BMC, HSC, CRC) plus Head of the Faculty International Office. In cases where the doctoral student is not employed by Lund University, the Head of Communications at Region Skåne or other external organisation is to be contacted. 

3. Crisis management 

In crisis situations, expert assistance is often necessary, for example to carry out support counselling with groups or individuals. The first instance is the occupational health care service, which can refer individuals on if necessary. 

Occupational health care (Lund University Staff Pages)

The Coordinator contacts the faculty Head of Communications, who provides advice and support in the event of media contact in cases where this may be relevant. 

4. Administration

The personnel coordinator at the department contacts the switchboard and requests that phone calls to the person concerned be redirected to a colleague. 

Switchboard: +46 46 222 00 00 

The personnel coordinator at the department contacts the person responsible for e-mail support and the directory administrator for Lucat at the department and together they ensure that: 

• All e-mails to the person concerned will be forwarded to a colleague. Staff at LDC will help with this.
• The data on the deceased is removed from Lucat.

LU Servicedesk: +46 46 222 90 00
LU Servicedesk web information (Lund University Staff Pages)

The personnel coordinator contacts the person responsible for the department/section/unit/department website who reviews the listings on the website in which the deceased is mentioned. 

The Faculty of Medicine Communications Section reviews the lists on the faculty central website in which the deceased is mentioned.

For the research students who are employed by Lund University, the personnel coordinator at the relevant department notifies the Salaries Office of the situation, which ensures that employment ends when they receive a death certificate. The Personnel and Recruitment Section at the faculty office cooperates with the HR Unit at Lund University and assists with information concerning funeral assistance, payment of pension benefits and insurance. Payment is made when the death certificate is received from the Swedish Tax Agency. The personnel coordinator ensures that any remaining vacation days are paid out. 

5. Flagging

The Coordinator notifies the service staff so that flags are to be flown at half-mast on the day of decease, or the day after. While flagging is ongoing, information about who has passed away can be found in each Reception (BMC, HSC, CRC, in the receptions there are white wooden frames and templates for the information).  

Flagging is an option and is not compulsory.

For PhD students employed by Lund University, the following also applies:

6. Representative

The Head of Department, or the person appointed by him/her at the department concerned ensures that the workplace is represented at the funeral and informs employees about when the funeral will take place. All employees who wish to attend the funeral may do so during working hours. 

7. Wreath

The Head of Department, or the person appointed by him/her at the department concerned ensures that the workplace sends a wreath of flowers to the funeral. 

8. Memorial service

The Head of Department, or the person appointed by him/her at the department concerned ensures that the workplace holds a memorial service and that all colleagues and family are notified of date and place. 

Possible venues in Lund: 

• Fernström Hall, BMC
• Spiritual Room (Quiet Room) for individual reflections, SUS
• Lecture Hall 1, HSC

Possible venues in Malmö:

• Small Auditorium, SUS
• Auditorium, CRC

9. Obituary

The Head of Department, or the person appointed by him/her, consults with the close colleagues of the deceased concerning the obituary to be published in local or national press. If the person concerned has also been active in healthcare, consider writing a joint obituary. 

For international PhD students, the following also applies: 

The action plan is followed as above. In addition to this, personnel coordinators at the relevant department are responsible for: 

• Addresses of the relatives of outgoing and incoming PhD students being held available at the department.
• In the event of decease, the country's embassy should be contacted for further information on what has been done and information to next of kin. 
• In the event of decease, scholarship providers must be informed.