Identifying, understanding, and working with grieving parents in the NICU, part II: strategies.

Supporting parents in coping with stress and loss improves the health and development of their child. This article looks at the need for monitoring the health and well-being of parents of infants in the NICU, including practical matters for health care professionals providing follow-up care. It is important to increase public and professional awareness of the grief response. Practical suggestions for coping with the NICU experience, many of them from professionals who are also parents of NICU patients, are offered for grieving parents and family members.