Original contribution
Emergency physicians' responses to families following patient death

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0196-0644(05)81794-9Get rights and content

Responses of emergency physicians when they interact with families after a death and their subsequent contact with survivors were examined. Questionnaires were sent to 138 Oregon emergency physicians and completed by 114 (83%). The number of deaths (mean ± SD) encountered by emergency physicians was 17 ± 15 per year. The majority of physicians (76%) usually notified the family in person and spent an average of 15 ± 11 minutes with the family. Subsequent contact with survivors, such as sending sympathy cards, making follow-up calls, or reporting autopsy results, was relatively infrequent. While 94% of our sample group reported a need for training in this area, less than one half received any training during medical school or residency. We suggest implementation of educational programs for physicians and development of outreach programs for survivors.

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Presented at the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine Annual Meeting in San Diego, May 1989.

Supported in part by a grant from the Kinsman Foundation. Dr Tolle is the recipient of a National Leadership Award in Clinical Medical Ethics funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts and the Henry J Kaiser Family Foundation.

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