How Do Nurses Deal With Death?

Dealing with death is a major aspect of any job in the medical field. It is exhausting for nurses to cope with loss, especially when patients get close to their heart. Dealing with death is painful, and if not dealt with properly, can lead to chronic burnout. 

Here are some valuable tips on how to deal with death, straight from veteran nurses–

Understand death is inevitable - Nurses need to recognize and accept the fact that nothing is immortal and all lives end in death. Nurses care for many patients and often get attached. As a nurse, if you find your patient’s condition is deteriorating, it is better to prepare yourself by acknowledging death as a possible outcome. By preparing yourself in advance mentally, it will be easier to cope with the death.

Let yourself mourn & grieve - Feeling sad for the loss of your patient’s life is a common emotion. In such a scenario, don’t hold back your sadness, be open about your feelings. Avoid keeping emotions inside. Instead, let yourself go through the grieving process. If you feel like crying, then it is better to let yourself cry. Let your feelings come out and you will end up feeling much better.

Interacting with the patient’s family - Nurses work hard to save their patients’ lives. When it ends on a death note, it is heart-breaking. If you are comfortable with it, give a warm hug to your patient’s family members. It will help you validate how much effort you put in to saving them. It will also give you much-needed closure.

Pray or meditate - Prayer or meditation is best for internal healing and gives you some peace of mind. Nurses see death more often than nearly anyone, and it can be daunting. Therefore, to clear emotional baggage, meditation is usually quite helpful. A good meditation session allows letting go of the sadness inside.

Give yourself a break-If recovering from the loss of a patient is proving difficult, then it’s better to take some time off from work. Give yourself a break and don’t take any extra shifts. This could lead to burnout or fatigue.

Do not dwell in grief- Facing death is part of the nursing profession. Initially,it might be overwhelming to deal with the death of your patients, but you need to keep going. You need to think positively by thinking about the patients that survived under your care and went home happy.