The nurse’s role during death and bereavement: a systematic review

Nurses play a pivotal role in end-of-life care, providing physical comfort, emotional support, and bereavement guidance for patients and families. However, their contribution often remains under recognized in healthcare systems. This systematic review aimed to synthesize existing evidence on the role of nurses during death and bereavement and highlight their contribution, challenges, and impact. A systematic search was conducted in PubMed, Cumulated Index in Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Scopus, Google Scholar and Web of Sciences for articles published between January 2000 and June 2025. Studies exploring nurses’ roles in death, dying, grief, and bereavement were included. Data extraction and synthesis followed Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines and registered in PROSPERO CRD420251133026. A total of 22 studies (qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods) were included. Included studies showed positive attitudes among nurses, family caregivers, and medical professionals providing palliative and end-of-life care. Experience about palliative care showed that there is a high demands of caring for patients who are dying frequently shape the complex and highly emotional experiences of nurses and family caregivers in palliative and end-of-life care. Lack of institutional support, time restrictions, cultural and family-related issues, limited training opportunities, and insufficient staffing were major obstacles. These results highlight the universality of these palliative care difficulties and are in excellent agreement with studies from around the world. In addition to the ongoing institutional obstacles that prevent high-quality care, the evaluation emphasizes the complex emotional and professional demands made on palliative care nurses. Enhancing nurse readiness and patient outcomes requires bolstering training, enhancing institutional resources, and encouraging culturally appropriate communication techniques. The necessity for globally informed but context-specific policy and practice reforms is highlighted by the consistency of local findings with global evidence.