• Dorothy Brooten, JoAnne M Youngblut, Rosa M Roche, Carmen Caicedo, Teresa Del-Moral, G Patricia Cantwell, and Balagangadhar R Totapally.
• Dorothy Brooten is a professor, JoAnne M. Youngblut is Dr Herbert and Nicole Wertheim Professor, Rosa M. Roche is a clinical assistant professor, and Carmen Caicedo is an assistant professor, Nicole Wertheim College of Nursing and Health Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, Florida. Teresa Del-Moral is an associate professor, Department of Neonatology, and G. Patricia Cantwell is the division chief of pediatric critical care medicine and medical director, pediatric palliative medicine, Holtz Children's Hospital, Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, Florida. Balagangadhar R. Totapally is a clinical professor, Florida International University and chief, Division of Critical Care Medicine, Nicklaus Children's Hospital, Miami, Florida. brooten@fiu.edu.
• Am. J. Crit. Care. 2019 May 1; 28 (3): 193-201.

BackgroundThe death of an infant or child has been described as the most stressful life event, but few reports exist on the effects on parents' physical health in the year after the death.ObjectiveTo examine acute illnesses, use of health services, and medication changes among parents from 3 racial/ethnic groups 1 to 13 months after the death of an infant or child in the neonatal intensive care unit or pediatric intensive care unit.MethodsIn a longitudinal study, 96 parents (41% black, 32% Hispanic, 27% white) of deceased infants or children were recruited from 4 children's hospitals and death records. Parents reported demographic information, acute illnesses, health services used, and medication changes 1 to 13 months after the death. Descriptive statistics and 1-way analysis of variance were used to analyze the data.ResultsSeventy mothers (age, mean [SD], 35.9 [7.13] years) and 26 fathers (age, 39.0 [7.37] years) participated; 56% of mothers and 42% of fathers had preexisting health problems before the death. Morbidity was greatest in the first 6 months, was relatively quiescent in months 7 through 10, and increased in months 11 through 13. Mothers reported 363 acute illnesses, 16 hospitalizations, and 124 medication changes. Morbidity rates and medication changes for fathers followed similar patterns but with lower frequency.ConclusionAfter the death of an infant or child, interventions for parents, especially parents with chronic health problems, are best targeted on illness prevention and mental health in months 1 to 6 and 11 to 13 following the death.© 2019 American Association of Critical-Care Nurses.

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