Working with families after a sudden child death

Abstract

Abstract Every child's death is a tragedy. Many paediatricians feel unprepared to support bereaved families after a sudden child death, and are concerned about what may or may not be permitted with concurrent Sudden Unexpected Death in Childhood (SUDIC) and coronial investigations. After a child death, parents need to be able to say goodbye to their child, they require information both about the cause of death and the process of investigations, parents may also require emotional support. This review describes how to support bereaved families from the time of death and in the weeks and months that follow.