Communicating the death of a patient always brings about a certain degree of insecurity in the physician. METHODS: To evaluate this issue, 121 family members of patients who died at our hospital as well as the professional who conveyed the information were interviewed. RESULTS: We verified that 12.1% of the families disapproved of how they were told about the death, and that 26.4% did not receive any attention at all from the medical staff. Physicians find that the most difficult situations arise when they have to notify the death of young patients (43.3%), death from an acute disease (56.6%), and when the family does not understand the situation (17%). Only 18.9% of the professionals considered their academic background adequate on this subject. CONCLUSION: Communication between the medical staff and the family members should take place after the death. The more difficult cases require a good relationship between the parties. Training of the professionals on the subject should be improved since it directly affects how family and relatives are dealt with.
Death; Communication; Family; Schooling
