Informing the family members about the sudden death of their loved one is a highly stressful experience for the treating doctors. Breaking the bad news to the bereaved family needs special skill on the part of the clinicians. An elaborate, step-wise modified action plan for breaking the sad news and grief reduction based on the literature has been presented here. The guidelines mentioned in the article are simply the tips to the clinicians and not to be considered as any form of protocols. Inclusion of this subject into the undergraduate medical curriculum has to be considered. By doing so, we can look forward to produce junior doctors who are better at coping with this awkward but extremely important aspect of clinical medicine.
Cook P, White DK, Ross-Russell RI. Bereavement support following sudden and unexpected death: Guidelines for care. Arch Dis Child 2002;87:36-8.
Barnett MM, Fisher JD, Cooke H, James PR, Dale J. Breaking bad news: Consultants′ experience, previous education and views on educational format and timing. Med Educ 2007;41:947-56.
Vande Kieft GK. Breaking bad news. Am Fam Physician 2001;64:1975-8.
Kent H, McDowell J. Sudden bereavement in acute care settings. Nurs Stand 2004;19:38-42.
Williams AG, O′Brien DL, Laughton KJ, Jelinek GA. Improving services to bereaved relatives in the emergency department: Making healthcare more human Med J Aust 2000;173:480-3.
Dubin WR, Sarnoff JR. Sudden unexpected death: Intervention with the survivors. Ann Emerg Med 1986;15:54-7.
Walker WM. Sudden cardiac death in adults: Causes, incidence and interventions. Nurs Stand 2010;24:50-6;quiz 58.
Walters DT, Tupin JP. Family grief in the emergency department. Emerg Med Clin North Am 1991;9:189-206.
Soreff SM. Sudden death in the emergency department: A comprehensive approach for families, emergency medical technicians, and emergency department staff. Crit Care Med 1979;7:321-3.
Adamowski K, Dickinson G, Weitzman B, Roessler C, Carter-Snell C. Sudden unexpected death in the emergency department: Caring for the survivors. CMAJ 1993;149:1445-51.
Ambuel B, Mazzone MF. Breaking bad news and discussing death. Prim Care 2001; 28:249-67.
Vanezis M, McGee A. Mediating factors in the grieving process of the suddenly bereaved. Br J Nurs 1999;8:932-7.
Parrish GA, Holdren KS, Skiendzielewski JJ, Lumpkin OA. Emergency department experience with sudden death: A survey of survivors. Ann Emerg Med 1987;16:792-6.
Edlich RF, Kubler-Ross E. On death and dying in the emergency department. J Emerg Med 1992;10:225-9.
Olsen JC, Buenefe ML, Falco WD. Death in the emergency department. Ann Emerg Med 1998;31:758-64.
