title: Infant and child deaths: Parent concerns about subsequent pregnancies.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Examine parents' concerns about subsequent pregnancies after experiencing an infant or child death (newborn to 18 years).
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty-nine semistructured parent (white, black, Hispanic) interviews 7 and 13 months post infant/child death conducted in English and/or Spanish, audio-recorded, transcribed, and content analyzed. Mothers' mean age was 31.8 years, fathers' was 39 years; 11 parents were white, 16 black, and 12 Hispanic.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Themes common at 7 and 13 months: wanting more children; fear, anxiety, scared; praying to God/God's will; thinking about/keeping the infant's/child's memory and at 7 months importance of becoming pregnant for family members; and at 13 months happy about a new baby. Parents who lost a child in neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) commented more than those who lost a child in pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). Black and Hispanic parents commented more on praying to God and subsequent pregnancies being God's will than white parents.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Loss of an infant/child is a significant stressor on parents with documented negative physical and mental health outcomes. Assessing parents' subsequent pregnancy plans, recognizing the legitimacy of their fears about another pregnancy, discussing a plan should they encounter problems, and carefully monitoring the health of all parents who lost an infant/child is an essential practitioner role.
authors.affiliation: Nicole Wertheim College of Nursing & Health Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, Florida.
authors.forename: Dorothy
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Brooten
authors.affiliation: Nicole Wertheim College of Nursing & Health Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, Florida.
authors.forename: JoAnne M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Youngblut
authors.affiliation: Nicole Wertheim College of Nursing & Health Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, Florida.
authors.forename: Jean
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hannan
authors.affiliation: Nicole Wertheim College of Nursing & Health Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, Florida.
authors.forename: Carmen
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Caicedo
authors.affiliation: Nicole Wertheim College of Nursing & Health Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, Florida.
authors.forename: Rosa
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Roche
authors.affiliation: Nicole Wertheim College of Nursing & Health Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, Florida.
authors.forename: Fatima
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Malkawi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001293:Attitude to Death; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002648:Child; D003376:Counseling / Q000379:methods; D005239:Fear; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology; D016487:Parenting / Q000523:psychology*; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D011247:Pregnancy / Q000523:psychology*; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000523:psychology*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Children; death and dying; family; infants; neonatal intensive care; parenting; pediatric