\n<\/p>\n
This process helped her grieve better. \u201cIt made the pregnancy loss feel real \u2013 the foetus was not just an unnamed thing in my body that was purged and thrown away along with other things. It was a life, a child that my husband and I were blessed with,\u201d said the 32-year-old.<\/span><\/p>\n One reason Goh struggled to find a funeral provider was because such rites are relatively uncommon for first trimester miscarriage\u00a0<\/strong>\u2013 especially in 2018.<\/span><\/p>\n In Singapore, stillbirths \u2013 pregnancy loss at or after 24 weeks\u2019 gestation \u2013 are registered at the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority. Parents may also choose to\u00a0<\/span>register the baby\u2019s name<\/span> and are issued a digital stillbirth certificate for funeral arrangements.<\/span><\/p>\n But when it comes to miscarriages, practices surrounding the claiming of foetal remains are less standardised.<\/span><\/p>\n Dr Seet Meei Jiun, head and senior consultant, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at KK Women\u2019s and Children\u2019s Hospital (KKH), said that it is standard protocol to inform patients that they may request the release of foetal remains following both first and second trimester miscarriages.<\/span><\/p>\n This has been a longstanding practice at the hospital, added Jocelyn Chng, assistant director of nursing at KKH.<\/span><\/p>\n At Singapore General Hospital (SGH), its head of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Dr Jason Lim Shau Khng, said that patients are explicitly informed of their right to request the release of foetal remains \u2013 also a hospital practice for many years.<\/span><\/p>\n However, \u201cthe ability to claim remains depends on the method of management used and the identifiability of the remains,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cFor first trimester cases, remains can typically be claimed after a surgical procedure. For second trimester miscarriages, patients may claim remains following a medically induced labour,\u201d Dr Lim explained.<\/span><\/p>\n However, \u201cin some early first trimester losses, the pregnancy tissue may already have been completely expelled prior to medical or surgical treatment, resulting in minimal or no identifiable remains available for claiming. In such situations, claiming may not be possible,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n In other cases, \u201cfoetal tissue may not be clearly formed or identifiable from other pregnancy-related tissue. Hence, this can make the physical claiming of remains technically challenging, or in some cases, not possible.<\/span><\/p>\nAFTER EARLY PREGNANCY LOSS<\/span><\/h2>\n