Helping parents cope with perinatal death.
Physicians often fail to realize the severe emotional impact of a perinatal death on the parents. The family physician is in an ideal position to assist the family through the normal grieving response. The parents should be promptly informed of the diagnosis of fetal or perinatal death, and the physician and parents should discuss the grief reaction. Funeral services often help the family deal with their grief. Follow-up interviews are valuable in assessing the family's adjustment.
D000328:Adult; D001293:Attitude to Death; D005260:Female; D005313:Fetal Death; D006117:Grief; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D010290:Parents; D010821:Physicians, Family; D011247:Pregnancy