Identifying, understanding, and working with grieving parents in the NICU, Part I: Identifying and understanding loss and the grief response

Abstract

The admission of an infant to an NICU is an unexpected event for the parents and one often not predicted by health care professionals. This highly stressiful and overwhelming hospitalization is likely to be one of the greatest life challenges that parents of newborns face. Parents need support from NICU professionals, among others, to cope with the losses that occur in the hospital setting. This article provides NICU professionals with general information about loss and the subsequent grief response, focusing on losses from sources other than death. Common emotional and physical responses are provided so these can be recognized in affected parents. By increasing their awareness of the topics of loss and grief, health care professionals can help ensure that grieving parents get the support needed to assimilate their loss into a life forever changed.