Volume 187 - Issue 3
Writing to the next of kin after the death of a patient
Author: Ian T Jones
Med J Aust 2007; 187 (3): 200. || doi: 10.5694/j.1326-5377.2007.tb01195.x
Published online: 6 August 2007
Published online: 6 August 2007
To the Editor: In his “Personal perspective” piece, Allen1 reminded us all of how medicine can at times truly be the noblest of professions. Writing to the next of kin after the death of a patient is occasionally a difficult task, but more usually provides an appropriate form of closure, not only to the relationship with the deceased patient, but also to relationships with the person’s partner, family members and friends whom you may have met during the treatment episode and whom you may not see again.
Since I began practice as a consultant 20 years ago (a practice that involves a substantial number of patients who require surgery for cancer), I have tried to write to the next of kin or significant other of every patient who has died while under my care.
The letter allows me the opportunity to say perhaps how brave the patient had been in the face of adversity or to acknowledge the support the next of kin had provided. A simple expression of condolence and an indication of how much a loved one may be missed seems to be the best way to “sign off”.
Such letters are only a small gesture, but I have often been gratified by how much comfort they seem to provide to those who receive them, and in all this time I have never had a response that could even remotely be considered “negative”.
In this current day, when practising clinicians appear to have a diminished role in our medical schools, may I suggest that Allen’s article — which I think is a great example of what is meant by the “art of medicine” — be distributed to our universities and colleges to be considered for inclusion in their teaching material and curricula.
References
- Allen RKA. On the merits of writing to the next of kin after the death of your patient: an Australian perspective. Med J Aust 2007; 186: 425. 0_ECICAIIH
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