Breaking the bad news when sudden death occurs.

Notification of family when sudden death has occurred is often a highly stressful experience for hospital Emergency Department physicians and nursing personnel. This article will offer some guidelines to health care professionals in helping a deceased patient's family cope with the initial grief and loss that accompanies the unexpected death of a loved one. At the same time, an understanding of the wide range of emotional responses of bereaved survivors may case some of the anxiety Emergency Department staff members associate with "breaking the bad news."