Abstract
When patients die in the emergency department (ED), emergency physicians (EP) must disclose the bad news to family members. The death is often unexpected and the act of notification can be difficult. Many EPs have not been trained in the skill of communicating death to family members. This article reviews the available literature regarding ED death notification training and proposes future directions for educational interventions to improve physician communication in ED death disclosure.
Highlights
When patients die in the emergency department (ED), emergency physicians (EP) must disclose the bad news to family members
Bereavement itself can be complicated by depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts or behaviors, substance abuse, post-traumatic stress disorder, and an increased risk of heart disease, cancer and high blood pressure
Many physicians trained in emergency medicine (EM) report that they received very little training on coping with patient death.[11]
Summary
Death Notification in the Emergency Department: Survivors and Physicians While most physicians receive some basic instruction during medical school regarding endof-life issues, most do not receive specific instruction on death notification skills.[9,10] many physicians trained in emergency medicine (EM) report that they received very little training on coping with patient death.[11] Since many EM residents lack the training to deal with the intrinsically difficult and stressful task of notifying the family about the death of a loved one, they are ill prepared to deliver the news in a manner that will best facilitate the survivors’ grieving process.
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