Guidelines exist for optimal care of bereaved relatives.
Establishing a limited bereavement program in a busy emergency department is quite feasible. Ultimately hospital staff also benefit from confronting issues surrounding death in the emergency department. Talking to the family may be seen as a chore and a waste of precious time on a busy shift. In not confronting these issues, however, we risk increasing job dissatisfaction and burnout. For relatives, the death of a loved one is difficult enough to cope with when it is expected.