Program enables nurses to process patient deaths, reduce burnout
Nursing leaders at Sentara Martha Jefferson Hospital in Charlotte, Va. and implemented a post-death care team protocol in March 2022 to support nurses systematically and reduce burnout after patients die. In the program, detailed in the American Journal of Nursing, nurses assigned to a deceased patient receive time for an additional short break and workload protections for the remainder of their shift. Survey responses from 69 nurses who were associated with 148 patient deaths in the first year of the protocol’s use revealed that nurse managers used the protocol in 42% of patient deaths. Comments underscored the positive benefits of using the protocol and negative experiences when managers did not use it. The authors noted the need to champion the protocol continually to change hospital culture.