Patient death

[jamesTnurse]

Fellow Nurses,

I am a relatively new nurse in the ED. I recently experienced my first patient death. I thought I was prepared to deal with this situation, but my experience was made harder than I thought due to my patient being a child. This childs death has affected me on a level in which I cannot articulate. I keep replaying it over and over in my head. I feel like it is eating me alive. I know it is a part of the job, and I am fine with that, but this child was taken way before their time. Any advice on how to deal with this?

[valeriamariaflynn]

Talk to your supervisors and have them guide you to the right people to talk to, therapy would be helpful for you to help you find a way to articulate your grief. I can't imagine how hard it must be to witness the death of a child, that's why Peds was off limits for me. The best of luck to you. Know that you did all that you could for that child, bless you for that.

[classicdame, MSN, EdD]

most employers offer employee assistance. Ours is offered as part of the health insurance plan. Contact HR about how to get this assistance. I feel it should automatically be offered to anyone whose patient dies. You are not alone and we care, but you need to have professional input on how to cope with this now.

[PawBobby]

I agree with the other two posts, you should talk to employee assistance. As a NICU nurse for 20+ years I can certainly empathize with you. Please do not ignore the issue, it will eat at you, just know that we do our best as I am sure you did and that's all we can do. You obviously care a great deal and when you save one it helps make it all worth while.

I pray for your peace of mind.