Communicating news of a patient's death to relatives

British Journal of Nursing

Volumn 20, Issue 12, 2011, Pages 737-742

  Reid, Megan ^a   McDowell, Joan ^b   Hoskins, Robert ^b  

^a ROYAL ALEXANDRA HOSPITAL   (United Kingdom)

^b UNIVERSITY OF GLASGOW   (United Kingdom)

Author keywords

Bereavement; Communication; Nurse's role; Relatives

Indexed keywords

EID: 79959697155     PISSN: 09660461     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.12968/bjon.2011.20.12.737     Document Type: Article

References (36)

1. Brown C, Wood A (2009) Oncology nurses' grief: a literature review. Clin J Oncol Nurs 13(6): 625-7
2. Birtwistle J, Payne S, Smith P, Kendrick T (2002) The role of the district nurse in bereavement support. J Adv Nurs 38(5): 467-78
3. Davies J (1997) Grieving after a sudden death: the impact of the initial intervention. Accid Emerg Nurs 5(4): 181-4 (Pubitemid 127673368)
4. Department of Health (2000) The NHS Cancer Action Plan: A plan for investment, a plan for reform. Department of Health, London
5. Department of Health (2005) When a Patient Dies: Advice on Developing Bereavement Services. Department of Health, London
6. Dyer ID (1993) Breaking the news: Informing visitors that a patient has died. Intensive Crit Care Nurs 9(1): 2-10
7. Gold KJ, Gorenflo DW, Schwenk TL, Bratton SL (2006) Physician experience with family presence during cardiopulmonary resuscitation in children. Pediatr Crit Care Med 7(5): 428-33 (Pubitemid 44386067)
8. Hallgrimsdottir EM (2000) Accident and emergency nurses' perceptions and experiences of caring for families. J Clin Nurs 9(4): 611-9
9. Harrahill M (1997) Giving bad news compassionately: a 2 hour medical school educational programme. J Emerg Nurs 23(5): 496-8
10. Herdman EA (2004) Nursing in a postemotional society. Nurs Philos 5(2): 95-103
11. Higgins D (2002) Breaking bad news in cancer care part 2: Practical skills. Prof Nurse 17(11): 670-1
12. Jurkovich GJ, Pierce B, Pananen L, Rivara FP (2000) Giving bad news: the family perspective. J Trauma 48(5): 865-73 (Pubitemid 30435952)
13. Kübler-Ross E (1969) Death and Dying. Tavistock, London
14. Li S P, Chan C W, Lee DT (2002) Helpfulness of nursing actions to suddenly bereaved family members in an accident and emergency setting in Hong Kong. J Adv Nurs 40(2): 170-80
15. MacDonald BH (2001) Quality of life in cancer care: patients' experiences and nurses' contribution. Eur J Oncol Nurs 5(1): 32-41 (Pubitemid 33668173)
16. Martin J (1989) Doctor's mask on pain. In: Dickenson D, Johnson M, Katz JS eds. Death, Dying and Bereavement 2nd edn. Sage Publications, London
17. McLauchlan CA (1990) ABC of major trauma. Handling distressed relatives and breaking bad news. BMJ 301(6761): 1145-9 (Pubitemid 20387206)
18. McSteen K, Peden-McAlpine C (2006) The role of the nurse as advocate in ethically difficult care situations with dying patients. J Hosp Palliat Nurs 8(5): 259-69
19. Milberg A, Olsson EC, Jakobsson M, Olsson M, Friedrichsen M (2008) Family members' perceived needs for bereavement follow-up. J Pain Symptom Manage 35(1): 58-69
20. Moore H (2009) Witnessed resuscitation: staff issues and benefits to parents. Paediatr Nurs 21(6): 22-5
21. Morrissey M V. (1997) Extending the Theory of Awareness Contexts by Examining the Ethical Issues Faced By Nurses in Terminal Care Nursing Ethics 4(5): 370-9
22. Mowll J (2007) Reality and regret: Viewing or not viewing the body after a sudden death. Bereavement Care 26(1): 3-6
23. Parahoo K (2006) Nursing Research: Principles, Process and Issues 2nd edn. Palgrave Macmillan, Hampshire
24. Parris RJ, Schlosenberg J, Stanley C, Maurice S, Clarke SF (2007) Emergency department follow up of bereaved relatives: An audit of one particular service. Emerg Med J 24(5): 339-42 (Pubitemid 46696358)
25. Perry SE (2009) Support for parents witnessing resuscitation: nurse perspectives. Paediatr Nurs 21(6): 26-31
26. Polit D F, Beck CT (2010) Essentials of Nursing Research: Appraising Evidence for Nursing Research 7th edn. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Philadelphia
27. Radziewicz R, Baile WF (2001) Communication Skills: breaking bad news in the clinical setting. Oncol Nurs Forum 28(6): 951-3
28. Resuscitation Council (UK) (1996) Should relatives witness resuscitation? Resuscitation Council, London
29. Robinson SM, Mackenzie-Ross S, Hewson GLC, Egleston C V, Prevost AT (1998) Psychological effect of witnessed resuscitation on bereaved relatives. Lancet 352(9128): 614-7 (Pubitemid 28380143)
30. Scott P (2004) Sudden death work: An ethnographic study of emergency care. Ph.D. Thesis: University of Durham
31. Scott T (2007) Sudden traumatic death: caring for the bereaved. Trauma 9(2): 103-9 (Pubitemid 350182850)
32. Speziale HJS, Carpenter DR (2007) Qualitative research in nursing. 4th edn. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Philadelphia
33. Stayt LC (2007) Nurse's experiences of caring for families with relatives in intensive care units. J Adv Nurs 57(6): 623-30
34. Stayt LC (2009) Death, empathy and self preservation: the emotional labour of caring for families of the critically ill in adult intensive care. J Clin Nurs 18(9): 1267-75
35. Taylor E (2007) How best to communicate bad news over the telephone. End of Life Care 1(1): 30-7
36. Tsai E (2002) Should family members be present during cardiopulmonary resuscitation? N Engl J Med 346(13): 1019-21 (Pubitemid 34983254)