For two brothers, embalming business is alive and kicking

 

As a child, Alvin used to spend many afternoons in the funeral parlor where his father and grandfather worked as embalmers.  

 

Paolo, meanwhile, took it upon himself only five years ago to continue the family tradition. And now at age 24, he is pretty much a master.   

“We’re always on call [so] we don’t really get much sleep,” said Alvin in Filipino, “You can’t afford not to take care of the corpse, it’s something you just need to get used to.” 

 

Twenty-two-year-old Paolo, on the other hand, just finished his embalming course last March. He even came in first in the licensure exam. He works for the same Manila funeral home that employs his sibling. 

 

“It’s easy once you get used to it,” said Paolo, echoing his brother. “I had advanced training with my brother who taught me how to handle a cadaver, identify an artery and aspirate.”

 

Contrary to popular belief, the brothers say that working with the dead is one of the most fruitful jobs in the market. 

 

A day in the life 

 

Paolo’s day usually starts with a text message from his boss informing him that they have a client. 

 

He says the client, being dead, doesn’t really make him queasy anymore. 

 

Anyway, prior to working on the dead client, Paolo first washes his hands and puts on personal protective equipment: a lab gown, gloves, mask and goggles. This protects him from any possible contamination from the cadaver. 

 

Properly protected, he can start working. 

 

Paolo says he cleans the body by using a disinfecting spray and scrubbing it with sponge and a soap solution. 

 

Once cleaned, the embalmer makes two incisions on the body - one on an artery and the other on a vein. A tube is connected to the artery to introduce formaldehyde, a chemical which will preserve the organs and the body.  Another tube is placed on the vein to drain the body’s blood and fluid. 

 

The embalmer then cleans the corpse again, applies some makeup and dresses it. 

 

Paolo said that they can spend up to three hours or more working on a cadaver. 

'It opened its eyes'

 

Even though they have gotten used to the job, both Paolo and Alvin admit there have been moments that spooked them. 

 

“It was my first time in the morgue [as a licensed embalmer],” Paolo said. “When I was dressing the corpse, I thought it opened its eyes! I got scared so I ran as fast as I could.” 

 

He also recalls incidents where his equipment, like a scalpel he could have sworn he just put down, would seemingly go missing.  “I would just say out loud, ‘Huwag namang ganyan.’ And then the scalpel would reappear.” 

 

Alvin’s had his own share of frights. 

 

“Sometimes you’d think there was someone watching you even if you were all alone in the morgue,” he says. “Sometimes I feel as if someone walked past behind me.”

 

Now, Paolo says, they loudly play music to get the crawly feeling off their backs and as a distraction. 

 

Licensed embalmers 

 

Since the 1950s, embalmers have been required to get a license. But with the lack of interest in the field, the Department of Health said policy implementation has become lax. 

 

“The owner of the funeral parlor was licensed but his workers were not,” says Josephine Hipolito, Head Secretariat of the DOH Committee of Examiners for Undertakers and Embalmers. 

 

Hence, in 2010, the DOH announced a strict implementation of the licensing of embalmers. They expect all funeral homes to adhere to this by 2013. If a practicing embalmer is discovered to not have a license, the funeral home he works for will be shut down. 

 

“The giving of license by the DOH is our way of ensuring the safety of the public, and that our dead will still be given proper and lawful service,” says Hipolito.  

 

At the moment there are six accredited DOH training institutions for embalmers. In order to qualify for a license, an applicant must pass the theoretical, oral and practical exams. 

 

“I’m proud because I have a license,” says Paolo. “Licensed embalmers know the techniques.” 

 

Rewards of working with the dead

 

Alvin now has a three-year-old girl. As to her following her father in the embalming business? “It is up to her,” said Alvin.

 

But it’s not a bad gig. The job is financially stable, with the weekly pay averaging P5,000 to P7,000. 

 

They can also moonlight during their free time. 

 

But, more than the money, Paolo said the real reward comes when the family of the deceased are appreciative of their efforts. 

 

“When the family says, ‘That’s beautiful, thank you,’ that’s enough to really lighten our spirits.”  — DVM/HS, GMA News

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This article is based on a Barangay Saksi segment aired last October 17 and produced by Segment Producer Natanya Nono and Correspondent Victoria Tulad.