Dealing with Death

[sana786]

Jus need a lil help on this q guyz. sorry if someone has already posted this q b4. Question is: How would you deal with death or reveal the death of a patient to their family/relative.

[Gizmo says -]

well i wuld tell them they are dead, macca, but in a decent sort of way ehe. obviously i would try and be very kind and very elpful in the way i told them, maybe giving them a cup of tea and a biscuit and a tissue.

as for wat to say to the relatives, i ave no idea, macca.

[Gizmo says -]

sorri, am a Dead Like Me addict hehe.

[Polldoll]

Depends on the context it was in. My first death the family had been sitting with him over night and I went in and saw his breathing stop on the monitor. I Switched the monitor off, checked for his pulse and told the relatives that he was gone. Then lots of hugs and tears all round. They want emapthy and understanding, as well as respect for their loved one.

Every situation is different and part of our skills are reading each situation and being aware of this.

Iv never had to give unexpected bad news before, but after my last placement in ITU dealt alot with the relatives.

[Dr Noodle]

Bring them to a private room along with tea, biscuits and tissues as Giz said. Plus respect for the loved one as Polldoll said is very important.

Don't ever, EVER, tell them the news in public or tell them a loved one will die soon like that. Saw this once, it was a horrible scene.

I don't say anything. What can you say? I just put my arm around them and let them talk (the women in particular seem to feel the need to talk when they're upset).

Bare in mind that patients/relatives are sometimes more understanding of the staff being busy than the staff are of them. If you see them crying in the corridor you have to take the initiative to take them somewhere private as they possibly don't want people to see them in that state but are afraid to say anything.

Being a HCA I've never had to reveal news so I have no idea what you do there.

[Gizmo says -]

er...i was talkin about the dead person, macca.


my bad.

[rjm]

If you are talking about getting this question in a med school interview, I wouldnt worry about it, you are very unlikely to get asked such a question. And if they do, all they would want you to say is that you would do it privately, make sure you use the word dead so there are no misconceptions (moved on - could have gone to another ward, passed away even some people dont get!), have a member of nursign staff with you - to pick up the pieces once you are gone, be empathetic, listen etc. Also make sure all the ward staff are ok/need to talk etc, some of them get v attached to patients.

I honestly dont think you would get asked such a question though, they would not expect you to have ever been in such a situation. This tends to be the type of question you get in post-graduate job interviews, but by which point most people have seen in done, both well and badly, and have done it themselves.

[Rich' Trash]

I think rjm is right in saying they wouldnt ask that for a med school interview. They might ask how you'd personally cope with death though - I got asked this at my interview for children's nursing.

[Bilalus]

kings asked my how would i tell a patient if he had cancer or something really bad, but yeah they wouldnt ask you how you would deal with death because you're not a doctor yet, your only 17/18!

[Rich' Trash]

Originally Posted by Bilalus

kings asked my how would i tell a patient if he had cancer or something really bad, but yeah they wouldnt ask you how you would deal with death because you're not a doctor yet, your only 17/18!

Well actually I'd be surprised if it wasnt the other way round. Telling someone their relative has died takes experience and craft. However, the ability to personally cope with an event that you will inevitably experience during your 5/6 years at medical school is important.