September 1999
The Director - Features
Managers vs. Embalmers
Five problems facing embalmers... and what managers can do about it
Although managers and professional embalmers are both equally important to the overall operation of a full-service funeral home, there is often tension between these two positions.
In Managers vs. Embalmers—Five problems facing embalmersŠand what managers can do about it, Vernie Fountain, a licensed embalmer for 22 years, explains problems other embalmers have told him regarding management issues. He discusses five conflicts that occur in many funeral homes and offers advice for solving these problems.
Fountain is the founder of Fountain National Academy of Professional Embalming Skills (FNA) in Springfield, MO, and specializes in post-mortem reconstructive surgery. In addition to teaching his successful techniques at FNA seminars, and state and national conventions around the U.S. and abroad, Fountain has been called upon by funeral homes to reconstruct some of the most difficult head-injury cases.
