Worry in Kilkenny as post-mortem services to be reduced at University Hospital Waterford

Coroner-requested post-mortem services at University Hospital Waterford (UHW) are set to end next January.

Each year, approximately 700 post-mortems are carried out at UHW on behalf of the Coroner’s Service – often in cases of sudden, accidental or tragic deaths.

One TD has warned this will have devastating human consequences for bereaved families across the south-east.”

Michael Murphy has called on the Tanaiste to ensure it continues, or to set out ‘the alternative arrangements, if any, which are planned for the southeast region’, including Kilkenny.

The HSE confirmed UHW had notified the Department in November 2024 that consultant pathologists could no longer provide coroner-requested autopsies from January 2026 due to unsustainable workloads and recruitment challenges.

The HSE will continue to provide mortuary facilities, while coroner services rest with the Department.