Supporting patients who are bereaved

What you need to know A doctor consults with a 69 year old patient and notes that she seems distant and sad. It is three months since her partner died. When the doctor asks how she is managing she says the house feels empty without him and she feels low. She no longer sees any reason to cook and struggles to clean. She longs for companionship but refuses invitations from her friends because being with them makes her miss her partner. Her grandchildren are a pleasure but they ask about grandpa, so she doesn’t want to see them. Tearfully, she talks of dreading her future. A woman presents with sleep disturbance and severe headaches a month after her son died by suicide. She believes that a good mother would have saved him and she is plagued by guilty self-recrimination. She seems irritable and has been fighting with her husband. She has been finding it very hard to care for her two living children. Loss of a loved one can be very painful. When seeking support, some people turn to their doctor. Because of their pivotal role in the community, physicians can provide excellent support for bereaved people and can often direct them to additional resources.1 Medical professionals who see bereaved patients …