A sudden death on clinical placement: A student’s perspective of nurse grief

Abstract

This paper explores the reflections of a student nurse upon hearing of the sudden death of a patient she had cared for the previous night on clinical placement. Her journey, and those of colleagues she has observed, prompted this paper’s discussion of nurse grief, the support mechanisms available and those preferred by nurses, and the potential outcomes if grief is not acknowledged, supported, and managed. Disenfranchised grief is a major factor in the development of prolonged and cumulative grief responses and negative outcomes for nurses, patients, and the collective nursing profession, however the establishment and utilisation of informal support networks has been found to encourage a discussion of feelings and lead to a healthy resolution of nurse grief.

Keywords:

• nursing
• clinical placement
• patient death
• sudden death
• nurse grief
• grief responses
• disenfranchised grief
• nurse support
• formal debriefing
• informal debriefing
• reflective practice