OBJECTIVE: To investigate parents' perspectives on the desirability, content, and conditions of a physician-parent conference after their child's death in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). STUDY DESIGN: Audio-recorded telephone interviews…
Congruence between preferred and actual place of death may be an essential component in terminal care. Most patients prefer a home death, but many patients do not die in their preferred location. Specialized (physician, hospice, and palliative) home…
Context The stage theory of grief remains a widely accepted model of bereavement adjustment still taught in medical schools, espoused by physicians, and applied in diverse contexts. Nevertheless, the stage theory of grief has previously not been…
Although grief is a normal response to loss, the death of a child is believed to be one of the most difficult losses a person can endure, and bereaved parents are considered to be an "at-risk" group. Even though most deaths of children in the United…
Learning Objectives: The importance of Palliative and End of Life Care (PC, EOL) for children in the PICU with life-limiting, chronic conditions is increasingly recognized (1). Robust PC improves outcomes by symptom score, cost, and length of life…
While bereavement camps serve as a support for children, this study examines a therapeutic recreation-based camp for families who have lost a child. The study triangulated documents, researcher reflection and staff interviews to highlight the themes…
AIM: To evaluate the efficacy of a home care program, closely integrated with a medical oncology department. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The charts, prospectively recorded, of all the patients treated at home by the "L'Aquila per la Vita" Home Care Unit…
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: There is increasing unmet need for solid organ donation. Alternative donor sources, such as donation after circulatory determination of death (DCDD), are needed. The objective of this study was to examine the impact of DCDD…
OBJECTIVE: To determine the accuracy of postmortem computed tomography (PMCT) for the assessment of causes in nontraumatic deaths in children. STUDY DESIGN: We enrolled cases of nontraumatic deaths of infants and children who underwent PMCT at a…
BACKGROUND: Coping with grief after a child's death is a complex and dynamic process. The Two-Track Model of Bereavement, which served as the theoretical framework for this study, examines biopsychosocial reactions to bereavement (track I) and…
OBJECTIVE: Donation after cardiac death has been endorsed by professional organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics as a means of increasing the supply of transplantable organs. However, ethical concerns have been raised about…
Background: There has been a breadth of research on the grief experience of parents following the death of a child. However, the role and impact of hospital-based bereaved services remain unclear. Aim: To identify services offered to bereaved…
This study explored parental self-identity at 6, 12, and 18 months following the death of a child to cancer. Semi-structured interviews were analyzed using qualitative methodology. Two patterns of parental self-identity emerged: identity…
To understand more about final conversations (communication between loved ones from the point of terminal diagnosis until death), 49 children/adolescents provided final conversation advice for other youth and for the dying person. Advice for fellow…
A 3-year-old girl with no particular medical history complained of a stomachache and died on the way to the hospital. The autopsy revealed marked right ventricular hypertrophy and dilation with no other cardiac abnormalities. Microscopically, the…
Since 2005, forgoing live-support (FLS) is allowed by the French law (known as the Leonetti law) for end-of-life patients only. This study aims at describing the variations over time in the use of the following methods to end life: FLS, brain death…
Introduction: Despite significant advances in disease treatment, resources for the pediatric palliative care (PPC) for children with serious illnesses are limited in South Korea. The obstacles to provide optimal PPC include inadequate funding,…
Aims In June 2016, Bill C-14 was enacted in the Canadian Parliament, allowing medical assistance in dying (MAID) for consenting adults with 'grievous and irremediable medical conditions' experiencing 'intolerable' suffering whose deaths are…
Background Technological advances have decreased PICU mortality but increased the number of children surviving with disability or technologically-dependent. Death in PICU most frequently follows withdrawal of life-sustaining therapy (LST),…
Pediatric advance care planning seeks to ensure end-of-life care conforming to the patients/their families' preferences. To expand our knowledge of advance care planning and "medical orders for life-sustaining treatment" (MOLST) in pediatric…
Background: Despite the number of interprofessional team members caring for children at the end of life, little evidence exists on how institutions can support their staff in providing care in these situations. Objective: We sought to evaluate which…
Social media is an important access point for engagement of children and adolescents. For individuals with a life-limiting illness or serving as the caregiver for an ill child, social media can be a helpful outlet for support and information…
Two bereaved mothers recount how they made meaning after the deaths of their children, recounting how opportunities to tell their stories in medical settings enabled them to construct narratives that promoted resilience and a sense of control.…
Background Good end-of-life care planning is vital to ensure optimal care is provided for patients and their families. Two key factors are open and honest advance care planning conversations between the patient (where possible), family, and health…
Background The literature reviews show that taking care of dying newborns for a nurse is associated with stress and anxiety, and nurses will be faced with many challenges, the present study aimed to explain the spiritual challenges experienced by…
Background: Inpatient hospice care (IHC) for adults in Germany is used in the last weeks of life. Children, adolescents and young adults (ACA) with life-limiting diseases are entitled to 28 days/year of IHC during their lifetime. We explored various…
Research aim: The main aim was to describe the needs of parents caring for a terminally ill child during the course of the illness, the time of dying, and after the death of the child. Secondary aim was to identify the risk factors occurring during…
Introduction: In Italy there are approximately 12000 children affected by life-limiting illnesses, which require palliative care services. The national reality, however, confirms the lack of a proper palliative care services network to ensure relief…
Background: The provision of pediatric palliative care in Asia Pacific varies between countries and availability of essential medications for symptoms at the end of life in this region is unclear. Objective: To determine medications available and…
Aims & Objectives: 60% of children admitted to RMCH PICU might benefit from palliative care (previous case review). Co-coordinating and maintaining continuity of care in these children with multi-speciality input is challenging. Weekly Multi…
Aim: Specialised paediatric palliative care has not previously been a priority in Denmark. The aim of this study was to support its development and organisation, by examining why and where children died using official national data for 1994-2014.…
Purpose According to the most recently published data from National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, approximately 78% of hospice providers in the United States serve pediatric patients, and the majority of these serve 1-10 patients per…
Aims & Objectives: End of life conversations form the basis of many complex communication scenarios in paediatric intensive care (PICU). These conversations are sometimes initiated late in the disease process. Anecdotal evidence is that many…
Aims & Objectives: To develop three linked projects to enumerate, reflect upon and identify ways to improve the experience of children with life limiting conditions (LLC) admitted to PICU without previous contact with palliative care services or…
Background/Objectives: As cancer care has improved, so has the understanding that children with cancer are at risk for psychological distress. The American Academy of Pediatrics has highlighted the importance of addressing these concerns. Our study…
Background As understandings of the impacts of end-of-life experiences on parents’ grief and bereavement increase, so too does the inclusion of bereaved parents into research studies exploring these experiences. However, designing and obtaining…
Improved identification of children with an increased likelihood of death can support appropriate provision of integrated palliative care. This systematic review aims to consider immobility and the associated likelihood of death in children with…
