A broken heart--the physician's role: bereaved parents' perceptions of interactions with physicians.

This survey study provides pediatricians the opportunity to hear directly from surviving parents and caretakers and is an initial step in developing training curricula for doctors and other health care professionals who wish to improve the effectiveness of their interactions with grieving families. A privately maintained listserve, originating in Kentucky, of bereaved parents and guardians was used to send written surveys via the U.S. Postal Service to those individuals living in Kentucky. Survey results include thematic concerns identified by the bereaved parents about physician interaction and actions at the time of a child's death. Although published guidelines are available for physicians attending to bereaved parents at the time of a child's death, these results suggest that the availability of guidelines alone may be insufficient and that more in-depth physician training and education are needed.